NEW YORK – “I leave more Greek, more Orthodox than when I came,” said the Consul of Greece in New York, Manos Koubarakis, during his speech at the farewell reception on September 25. The reception on Monday evening at the Consulate General of Greece in New York was hosted by the Consul General Konstantinos Koutras and attended by representatives of associations, federations, and other institutions of the Greek-American community. His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, Bishop of Efkarpia Ierotheos, priests and parish council presidents, school and school board directors, as well as professionals were also present.
Koubarakis, as he said during his speech, took up his duties on September 1, 2013, and departs for Addis Ababa in Ethiopia.
The position vacated by Koubarakis is now occupied by Mirella Roufanis, a native of Naxos, belonging to the younger generation of diplomats. She comes from the Central Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and also from the diplomatic office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Kotzias.
Consul General Koutras welcomed all those in attendance and then highlighted the “terrific” term of Manos Koubarakis.
At the same time, he noted that moral values and principles he served with passion from the start will remain unchanged and that “love, respect, appreciation, and faith in friendship are the best passport of farewell.”
He then quoted Kazantzakis, “The ideal teacher is the one that becomes a bridge for his student to cross. And when he makes his passage easier, he is happily torn down, encouraging his student to build his own bridges” and noted that Koubarakis is called to build his own bridges.
“We thank you for your contributions to the Consulate General, to the Hellenes abroad, and to Greece,” concluded Koutras.
Koubarakis expressed his gratitude to the host, his wife- Popita Pavli and their son Dionysios, for the love they surrounded him and his family with, as well as for the staff of the Consulate, and even named all the employees.
“The service at the Consulate General of New York was a great school and even the greatest of my life,” Koubarakis pointed out, reminding himself that at every step he felt the love of the Greek-American community.
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Source: thenationalherald.com
