The Metropolitan Evangelos Ambassador Awards Program
Fr. Christos Christofidis

Dear Parents, Family and Friends of our Annunciation GOYA:

Greetings in the name of the Holy Trinity!

I am pleased to announce to you the Metropolitan Evangelos Ambassador Awards Program. This program, instituted in all Greek Orthodox parishes of the Delaware Valley Region, seeks to identify GOYAns who exemplify Orthodox Christian values and offer them positive reinforcement for their excellent life choices.

We often hear the saying, “Our children are the future of the Church ". Actually, we can make a case that the reverse is true-the Church is the future of our children. In a society which seeks out instant gratification and covets material goods, today`s Orthodox teens get mixed massages when their families hold fast to our Hellenic cultural traditions and live by a code of Orthodox morals and ethics. With the Ambassador Awards, the Church seeks to recognize those teens (seventh to eleventh grade) who are guided by their faith and significantly personify the attributes of Hope, Peace, Faith and Love.

The youth workers and catechists of our parish are being asked to identify young people who qualify for these awards. Four of these candidates will be selected by a special committee to represent Annunciation Parish at the region-wide event to be held November 8, 2009, where an over-all winner for each category will be announced. The nomination process begins now and will continue until September 1st. Please honor the GOYAns you know by referring them to their Youth Advisors, Sunday School teachers or other parish youth workers who will then begin the application process. For further information you may contact me.

Recognizing that the young people of our Annunciation family are bright, talented and committed to their Orthodox faith, I am confident that they will shine among their peers and earn their places in the inaugural class of youth Ambassadors.

In Christ the Lord,

Father Christos