Heritage America 2025 Concludes
- National Hellenic Society
- Aug 5
- 3 min read
The National Hellenic Society, together with leading public policy firm Manatos & Manatos, hosted twenty-three Greek American students in Washington, DC from January 29-31, 2025 for its annual Heritage America Program.
The students that participated in this exciting education program will met with Greek-Americans who have reached the pinnacle of success in America, including the following.
The weekend started with an orientation and reception at the Embassy of Greece, where students were welcomed by program leaders and able to visit with the evening's special guests, including:
● Heritage America Co-Founder / THI Executive Director, Mike Manatos
● National Hellenic Society Executive Director, Art Dimopoulos
● Embassy of Greece Counselor, Konstantinos Ntelikos & Pol. Secr. George Fostiropoulos
● Embassy of Cyprus Deputy Chief of Mission, Myrianthi Spathi
● Defense Attaché, Embassy of Greece, Colonel Odysseas Papaevangelou
● Air Attaché, Embassy of Greece, Colonel Ioannis Markakis
● Naval Attaché Embassy of Greece, Captain Nikolaos Lazakis
● Military Attaché, Embassy of Greece, LTC Evangelos Zacharis
● Congressional Liaison, Embassy of Cyprus, Andronikos Stylianou
● Other diplomats from the Greek and Cyprus Embassies
On day two, program participants made their way to the U.S. Capitol where they were able to meet with the Senior Policy Advisors to the Greek-American members of congress, including:
● Congressman Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Senior Policy Advisor, Nathan Stamps
● Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander (D-NH), Senior Policy Advisor, Michelle Shevin-Coetzee
● Congressman Mike Haridopolos (R-FL), Legislative Assistant
● Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), Senior Legislative Assistant, Alex Schroeder
● Congressman Chris Pappas (D-NH), Senior Legislative Assistant, Jake Friedman
● Congressman Jimmy Patronis (R-FL), Legislative Assistant
● Congresswoman Dina Titus (D-NV), Chief of Staff, Mitchell Moonier
After a photo-op on the Speaker's Balcony, they headed over to The Monacle for a lunch with many special guests, including:
● Former White House Office of Legislative Affairs, Alex Angelson
● Senator Jon Husted (R-OH), Chief of Staff, Rebecca Angelson
● Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA), Press Secretary, Athina Lawson
● Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA), Communications Director, Greg Steele
● Principal, Trilogy Advisors, John Sitilides
After lunch, they headed over to K&L Gates where they met with the following prominent Greek Americans:
● Vietnam War hero and Calamos Investments Founder & Chairman, John Calamos
● Commanding General, US Army Forces Command, 4 Star General Andrew Poppas
● Former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO Global Forces, 4 Star Admiral James Stavridis
● ABC News Chief Anchor, George Stephanopoulos
● Former CNN Worldwide EVP and Chief Digital Officer, Athan Stephanopoulos
This was followed by a visit to the White House, where they met with White House Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy Michael Kratsios.
This exciting day concluded with a reception at Balos Estiatorio that featured many prominent thought leaders, including:
● Owners, Georgetown Cupcake, Katherine Kallinis Berman and Sophie Kallinis LaMontagne
● Meta Platforms, Head of Economic Opportunity & Advocacy, Diana Doukas
● Former Chief Speechwriter for President Clinton / Editor & Chief, Washington Monthly, Paul Glastris
● Former HHS Director of Intergovernmental and External Affairs, Jack Kalavritinos
● Former Fox 5 News Anchor / President and CEO, Laura Evans Media, Laura Evans Manatos
● Head of Americas Policy, Block Inc., Tom Manatos
● First Greek-American female Federal Judge, Eleni Roumel
● Cybersecurity Reporter, Politico, John Sakellariadis
● Chair, Adventist Healthcare Neurosurgery, Dimitri Sigounas
● President & CEO, American Public Transportation Association, Paul Skoutelas
● Sports Director, WTOP, George Wallace
On the final day, students returned to K&L Gates and met with more prominent Greek-Americans, such as:
● Longest-serving CIA Director in US history, George Tenet
● Protopresbyter of the Ecumenical Throne, Father Alex Karloutsos
● Chair, National Hellenic Society (NHS), Lea Soupata
● New York Times Chief White House Correspondent, Peter Baker
● Gibson & Dunn, Partner / Co-founder and President, THI George Stamas
● President and CEO, ECOS, Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks
● K&L Gates Partner / NHS Board Member, Manny Rouvelas
● California Lieutenant Governor, Ambassador Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis
● Former Under Secretary of State, Brian Bulatao
● Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY)
● Heritage America Founder / CEO of Manatos & Manatos, Andy Manatos
● Greek Orthodox Archbishop of America, His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros
Following a lunch, the students were treated to a tour of DC architecture and monuments inspired by ancient Greece.
Thank you to all the students and special guests that participated in this year's program.
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