National tragedy demonstrates importance of local event

by Jim Burton
Niagara Wheatfield Tribune, July 3, 2008
Lewiston Porter Sentinel, July 5, 2008

Tim Russert’s shocking death last month gave even greater meaning to one of the area’s many upcoming festivals.

St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church will be holding its fourth annual Mediterranean Festival this month to promote heart health awareness. This year, the event will run from Friday, July 11, to Sunday, July 13. Tickets are only $1.

“A lot of people from this area were greatly affected by his death, and it showed how much we need to learn about heart conditions,” said event publicist Judith Mokhiber.

The three-day festival will be located on the church’s grounds at 1073 Saunders Settlement Road, in the Town of Lewiston. Some of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center’s Heart Center of Niagara and to Mount St. Mary’s Hospital and Health Center.

“This festival was started in 2004 as a way to give something back to the community,” said Mokhiber. “The heart center was being built, and we wanted to raise money to help them buy new equipment.”

While promoting heart health, the Mediterranean Festival also offers locals the chance to experience many unique and diverse cultures. This celebration will, as always, feature ethnic food, cultural entertainment, live music, a Kids Village with rides and games, and a basket auction with a grand prize of $1,000.

“The purpose of this festival is to share our culture and faith, and also support heart health because we are the No. 1 heart disease county in the United States,” explained the Rev. Paul Solberg, pastor of St. Georges.

Some of the Mediterranean food at this event will include souvlaki, grape leaves stuffed with meat and rice, chickpea falafel, a salad dish called tabouleh, pita bread, and a lamb dish called kibbee. There will also be homemade desserts and bread for sale, either individually or in assortments.

Two new bands will perform this year, an Arabic group called Mazaj, and a Greek group called the Aegean Duo. The St. George Dance Troupe also will be on hand to showcase Arabic dancing, a fun and healthy activity for the whole family.

Food, entertainment and music are all ways of teaching others about Mediterranean culture.

“We have people in our parish who are from or have parents from Greece, Georgia, Lebanon, Egypt, Ethiopia and Jordan,” said Solberg. “We want to preserve our heritage and Christian faith, and this festival is a way to do that.”

New this year is the 50/50 split raffle that will run each day of the festival, in addition to the basket auctions. This is a chance to win great cash prizes while supporting an extremely worthwhile cause.

Hours for this event will be 4 to 11 p.m. on Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, and noon to 7 p.m. on Sunday. There will be a closing ceremony at 5:30 p.m. where checks will be presented to representatives from Memorial and St. Mary’s hospitals. Keith Radford from Channel 7 News will be on hand for this presentation.

Last year’s festival drew about 4,000 people, and that number is expected to rise this year. It has quickly grown in popularity because of its variety of entertainment and support of local heart health centers.

For more information on the Mediterranean Festival, visit www.st-george.squarespace.com.