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7 THE SHEPHERD • APRIL 2026 • SAINT SPYRIDON GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF SAN DIEGO WE ARE PHILOPTOCHOS, and we believe the good works of our Anthousa Philopto- chos ‘Friend of the Poor’ Chapter are vital and noble – to aid the needy and the poor, to promote the charitable, benevolent, and philanthropic purposes of the Greek Ortho- dox Archdiocese of America. With the sup- port of Anthousa members and the St. Spyr- idon community, our chapter is financially sound and was able to gift over $46,000 to organizations and causes this past year. Some of the Metropolis and National Min- istries our chapter supports include Kids ‘n’ Cancer, Feeding the Hungry, Hellenic Col- lege/Holy Cross Seminary, Hellenic College/ Holy Cross Adopt-A-Student, Children’s Medical Fund, International Orthodox Christian Charities, and The Holy Monas- tery of the Theotokos the Life-Giving Spring just to name a few. Locally, with your support and most impor- tantly your participation: • We supported Dewey Elementary School to provide school supplies and books. • Prepared over 2400 meals through our partnership with FOCUS (Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve). • Hosted children with cancer and their fam- ilies at our annual Angels Christmas Party. • Participated in the Salvation Army Giv- ing Tree providing Christmas presents to needy children in San Diego. • We walked as Team Anthousa to support the Susan G. Komen Foundation in their ‘More Than Pink” walk. • Supported 65 college students through our College Connection ministry by sending gift cards and notes of encouragement to them throughout the school year. AGAPE - A CELEBRATION OF LOVE Sunday, April 19th , 2:00 PM at the Newport Beach Country Club. This special event will benefit the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco Ladies Philoptochos Kids ’n’ Cancer Ministry. Register at www.sfphilop- tochos.org or by calling 415-431-2600 by April 12, 2026. Cost is $125 per person. Hope to see you there! SUNDAY FELLOWSHIP Please consider sponsoring a Sunday Fellow- ship Hour with your friends and family by providing simple refreshments (donuts or bagels, fruit and juice). You can honor fam- ily members or celebrate special occasions. Contact Olympia Kyriakidis at 619-507-6521 or karpenisiotisa@gmail.com ICON ADORNMENT Philoptochos invites every family to com- memorate a special Feast Day in honor of your special someone by offering a donation to cover the cost of decorating the icon with beautiful fresh flowers for veneration in the Narthex. The liturgical year presents many opportunities to honor your family mem- bers and an important day in the life of the Church (suggested donation is $85). Please contact Soula at 619.297.4165 to reserve your date now. Once again, I am truly grateful for your gen- erosity, as $453 was collected when a special tray was passed after Divine Liturgy onMarch 15, the third Sunday of Lent, for our Hellenic College Holy Cross seminarians, thank you for contributing to such a worth cause. It is never too late to join Philoptochos! Please visit our table in the hall to sign up or visit www.anthousa.net. Please join us as we continue to put our faith into action through our many philanthropic ministries. WE ARE PHILOPTOCHOS!! In Christ’s Sisterhood, Michelle Defelippi Anthousa Chapter President PHILOPTOCHOS NEWS