Greek Fest celebrating 34 years in Halifax

The Greek Festival has been a mainstay in Halifax for more than three decades, and Bessy Nikolaou has been a part of it since she was a child.

Going into its 34th year, she’s grown up with the cultural phenomenon that introduces residents and visitors to everything Greek.

“I have been a volunteer in various capacities since the launch of our festival in 1986. At that time I was an 11-year-old in Greek school, dancing for our guests,” said Nikolaou, who is now the marketing and communications lead.

“I love my culture, I love my community (both the Greek and Halifax community) and nothing brings me more joy than to see the two collide. Halifax has shown us so much love and support for 33 years running, it's why we are able to continue running the festival.”

She sees showing diverse cultures in Halifax as incredibly important in making the city world-class.

“Halifax has made it very clear they want this. Their desire for our festival is a huge driver. But in addition to providing an amazing weekend of Greek food and culture for the HRM, it's a vehicle for engaging the youth in our community,” she said.

“In the last few years, we have seen a re-emergence of youth engagement and it's a beautiful thing to see unfold. They will be the future leaders of the Greek community of Halifax.”

She said the event is about family, but that term applies to the broader community in Halifax, including neighbours, colleagues and friends.

“It's like one big dinner party, with great food, music and entertainment. What better way to learn about a different culture than to immerse yourself in it. Amazing food, delicious glyka/sweets, authentic music, traditional Greek dances, history and more are involved,” she said.

“We believe doing so does enrich people's understanding of the bigger world, immigrant communities and the bonds that tie us together.”

She said the Greek Festival is the first festival of the summer season and guarantees Greek community members are in Halifax and not vacationing.

“The first festival was beyond our expectations. We were overwhelmed with the attendance. We thought we had prepared enough food, but we miscalculated the interest and support of the local community. By early Saturday evening our tasty Greek food tables were empty,” she said of the first event.

“The Greek women found a solution. They communicated to others that we had more mouths to feed. The telephones were on fire at midnight that Saturday night asking individuals to help prepare food for the next day. Not only did individuals prepare food in the middle of the night, but also many of our local Greek restaurants prepared baklava, pastitsio, moussaka, gemista, galaktoboureko, and many other delicacies.”

The festival could see 15,000 visitors and includes an outdoor tent, four days of food, Greek language lessons, dance, tours of the Byzantine Greek Orthodox church, kids activities and music.

Held at the church at 1146 Purcells Cove Road, they’re so thankful for the help they’ve received from the community.

“Purcells Cove Road neighbours have been especially supportive, despite the disruption for this one weekend a year. Our sponsors have been the lifeline of our festival as well. As you can imagine, executing an event of this size comes with its expenses,” she said.

She says the reasons the event is so special are two-fold.

“Familiar faces year over year coming out to support our community is simply heartwarming. The level of support and love from the HRM, our B3P community, sponsors, and friends is astounding. We are driven to continue to provide them with the best of Greece in the heart of Halifax,” she said.

“Youth engagement is so big also. I don't mean just the Greek kids in our community. They have big networks of friends who all come out to support and learn about the Greek community. It's just beautiful to watch.”

The Halifax Greek Fest goes from June 6 to June 9, and is $5 a day, or $8 for a weekend pass. It’s free for seniors 65+, and kids under 10 are free. Thursday also offers free admission.

A 50/50 draw will be one on site. More informatio about Greek Fest can be found online.