Members of the FDF Management Team come together from all over the SF Metropolis. The Management Team is broken down into multiple teams that help to host the weekend. This edition of “5 Greeks” highlights a few of their seasoned members, their area of FDF expertise, and their exciting lives outside of FDF. Be it medical school or travelling the world, the management team is definitely well rounded.
Tonie Bangos (22, Southern California): Tonie has been serving on the FDF Management Team since 2013, assisting to make registration smooth throughout the weekend. Whether you need a ticket to the glendi or admission to view the competitions, you can find her smiling face at the registration table. Tonie started at FDF as a dancer and is currently in school completing her degree in Marine Biology, to pursue a career as a mammologist. When asked what her favorite FDF memory is, Tonie said: “When your group is together, your holding hands and waiting… hoping… praying that they call your [group’s] name for third place, Founders, second, first, sweepstakes. At that point, you don’t care, you just want your name to be called. That moment, the unity that you all go through, that togetherness, you can’t beat that feeling.” Tonie’s favorite memory beautifully highlights the 2017 theme of FDF, “All For One.”
Vasili Sotiropulos (34, Central California): Vasili is a Real Estate professional, but in his downtime he travels and sails the world. In fact, he recently hiked the entire island of Cyprus for a project with National Geographic, thus he calls himself an “Indiana Jones wannabe.” Although 2017 was the first year for the Greek Indiana Jones to be on the Management Team, he was an avid dance participant between the ages of 6 to 23. As a part of the management team, Vasili worked on the events team. His favorite memory captures a prominent theme of the weekend: “What stands out the most over the years is the parea. Spending time with your friends, cousins, aunts, uncles, koumbari, yiayiades, papoudes… is what makes FDF so amazing. Making new friends and strengthening your relationships with people of the same culture and faith are what make up my best memories of FDF, and that’s also what keeps me coming back,” Vasili said. Without a doubt, everyone can agree with him on that.
Alexandra Spirtos (24, Texas): Alexandra is currently in the residency phase of medical school and just finished her third year on the FDF Management Team, in the workshop division – helping to make sure that all of those classes run smoothly throughout the weekend! Alexandra started dancing with FDF in middle school. Her favorite memory from FDF: “I love thinking about the times that my dance group would get here and after opening ceremonies, or in the morning, whatever time we could find, [in a] corner or parking lot or area, pulling up some version of our music and either practicing or just starting our own little dance get together. I love spending the time with our group at FDF.”
Katherine Dikeakos (34, Washington): Katherine is a research analyst and has a longstanding career with the FDF Management Team: this year was her ninth year being a part of the team! No doubt that her FDF weekend was busy as she works on the competition team with Division I (Competition for Division I started at 8:30 a.m. on both Friday and Saturday, and shortly after Divine Liturgy on Sunday). Katherine has danced with various dance groups from her parish throughout her time as an FDF participant. In thinking of her favorite FDF memory: “FDF has been such a big part of my life it is hard to narrow it down to one memory! Though winning Division II sweepstakes in 1997 was for sure a highlight, I think the best time I’ve had at FDF has been serving on the Management Team with such an amazing group of people.”
Efstratios “Yianni” Magoulias (25, Massachusetts): Yianni has danced at FDF for over 20 years and has been on the FDF Management Team for five years, serving on the Logistics Team. Yianni is currently a third-year Master of Divinity student at Hellenic College Holy Cross, Greek Orthodox School of Theology. In speaking of his time through FDF and dancing, he truly exemplifies the core values of FDF (faith, dance, and fellowship): “My favorite FDF memory has been watching my current group, Panikos, grow as dancers and Orthodox Christians. This is only our second year dancing together, but in the two years, the group has invested, learned, and loved a new region that they haven’t danced before (Pontos) while growing together in Orthodox faith and fellowship.”
Email the author: Giuliana
