Cultural Association “Chatzigiorgis” – Fifty years of cultural journey and contribution

Cultural Association “Chatzigiorgis”

Fifty Years of Cultural Journey and Contribution

The Cultural Association “Chatzigiorgis” is completing fifty years of life. This anniversary is an opportunity to pay tribute to its founders, as well as to all those who, through their personal contribution and persistent efforts, helped ensure that the Association remained alive and active over time.

From its founding to the present day, people of every age have each added, in their own way, a small or larger stone to its path. Thanks to this collective effort, a great many events and activities were carried out: some stood out for their success and their intellectual value, others were less impressive. All of them, however, are part of the Association’s history.

With its rights and its wrongs, through the struggles, efforts, and contribution of the people who passed through its ranks, “Chatzigiorgis” has been, even if only as a small ray of light, a steady vehicle of culture and spirituality in a small village of Thasos. Throughout this journey, the Association has made its presence felt in the life of Theologos and in its cultural activities.

It would be impossible to record here the entire history of the Association and the full scope of its activity over these fifty years. For this reason, we will refer only briefly to some of the most characteristic and prominent events and activities of its fifty-year journey.

These events are only a small part of the Association’s overall activity. Many other activities, equally important and worthwhile, either did not receive much publicity or, by their nature, remained further from the public eye.

These include activities concerning our historical heritage, our culture, cleanliness, social support, the marking of the village’s sights and historic routes, as well as initiatives for the protection and promotion of the natural environment. In this context, university professors were also invited, who gave lectures and informational presentations on the nature, the environment, and the water resources of the Theologos area.

“Chatzigiorgis,” then, continues to be present. To remind locals and visitors alike that in Theologos culture exists and breathes, beyond the — legitimate, morally acceptable, and lawful — pursuit of tourism income.

Because however important economic activity may be, there should always exist, in the soul of every person, a small crack through which a ray of culture, creativity, and initiative can pass. A collective and unifying activity, aimed neither at personal promotion nor at the satisfaction of individual interests and self-interest, but at the “breaths of life” of a village that carries a distinctive history and a heavy, precious past.

A past that needs everyone’s help in order to remain alive and to be passed on to future generations.

We all owe it to make our presence felt, with a small or large contribution, according to each person’s abilities and inclination. The only truly unfair thing is for some to remain at a distance and limit themselves to criticism: to judge, to reproach, and to condemn the mistakes of others, forgetting that the only ones who never make mistakes are those who do absolutely nothing.

Perhaps, indeed, more could have been achieved, if more people had given more. This, however, is a question that each of us is called to answer personally, voluntarily, and honestly to ourselves:

“What have I done?”

An answer that, in the end, we all owe first and foremost to ourselves.