-
October 31, 2022Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Daytona Beach, Florida was blessed with a pastoral visit by His Grace, Bishop Sebastian of Zela who presided over the celebrations of the feast day of the Parish on October 25th and 26th.
As part of the various activities prepared for this visit, His Grace, Bishop Sebastian bestowed a special award from the Greek School Program of Saint Demetrios Parish upon one of the students, Michael Bramblett.
The 2022 Greek Learning Achievement Award of “1001 Words - ΧΙΛΙΕΣ ΚΑΙ ΜΙΑ ΛΕΞΕΙΣ” is imparted upon students who successfully complete the first phase of a special Greek Language program by committing to memory one thousand and one (1001) widely used words from the Greek vernacular.
This special program has been designed as part of the Greek School program of Saint Demetrios Parish in Daytona Beach, Florida. It aims to adapt to the current changes that are happening with the conditions of learning the Greek language that are affecting parishes across the country. The goal is to keep the learning of the Greek language as relevant, effective, and applicable.
As part of the ceremony of bestowing this award, the student is required to pass through an oral test in front of the congregation. Michael passed this test with flying colors when he answered all of His Grace’s questions that were carefully prepared for this test at the conclusion of the Vespers service.
The bestowing of this award marks the completion of the first schooling phase, and Michael still has four more similar stages to complete in order to reach the finish line of this promising program.
It will be impressive to see which students and how many will meet this 1001 Words challenge on the next Saint Demetrios Feast Day in 2023!
Until a year from now when the answer becomes known, the focus needs to stay on the teaching and learning so more students can become eligible to receive this awesome award!
Michael Bramblett and His Grace Bishop Sevastianos of Zela
