by Christos Tuton – January 17, 2019

NEPOMAK Executive Committee meets in New York City

The Executive Committee of NEPOMAK met in New York City, USA from 27-30 December 2018. Representatives of the Executive Committee from around the world, as well as young Cypriots from across the United States of America, participated in the meeting.

The meeting officially opened on the evening of Thursday, 27 December with a welcome dinner and workshops began the following morning. During the workshops, delegates evaluated NEPOMAK’s flagship summer programmes (NDCP & NCCT), engaged with some of the latest talking points in the process to reunify Cyprus, discussed ways to improve how the organisation communicates its work, and looked at streamlining NEPOMAK’s branding. The meetings were held at WorkSocial Conference Center.

NEPOMAK were joined for most meetings by Alexis Phedonos-Vadet, Consul General of the Republic of Cyprus to New York, and his presence was greatly valued by all delegates. Representatives of the Federation of Cypriot American Organisations (FCAO), including President Kyriacos Papastylianou, also participated through a session discussing the Cypriot community in the USA and how NEPOMAK USA and the FCAO can further their cooperation.

“Our Executive Committee meeting in New York City has produced excellent results and new ideas for NEPOMAK that our team is excited to implement during the next few months. I’m inspired by the energy and enthusiasm shown by our new and growing team,” said NEPOMAK President, Christos Tuton. “I’d like to thank NEPOMAK USA and the American Cypriot community, particularly the FCAO; Lampousa Cypriot American Association; and Philip Christopher, President of PSEKA; for their warm welcome and their support for our EC meeting.”

NEPOMAK USA President Georgia Stavrou was happy with the success of the meeting. “The meeting brought together representatives from the UK, Canada, and five states across the United States,” she said. “NEPOMAK USA has continued to grow both in representation and activity over the past few years. This year’s conference provided an opportunity to showcase and share the success stories of our Cypriot communities and the Cypriot youth here in the US. I wish my sincerest congratulations to new NEPOMAK USA President, Argyris Eleftheriou, and the rest of the new Executive Board. I am confident he and the new team will bring NEPOMAK USA to the next level both locally and nationally.”

During the evenings of the EC meeting and over the next few days, NEPOMAK’s delegates visited famous landmarks around New York City with the excellent guidance of the local NEPOMAK USA branch members. There was a tour of the United Nations headquarters by staff from the Mission of the Republic of Cyprus to the United Nations featuring a private meeting with Cyprus’ Ambassador to the United Nations, Kornelios Korneliou. The Ambassador answered questions from NEPOMAK’s representatives about the UN’s role in the world, Cyprus’ role in the UN, and the Cyprus issue more generally.

Among many other landmarks and sites, NEPOMAK’s delegates visited the 9/11 Memorial at the World Trade Center site and looked around the 9/11 Memorial Museum in a deeply moving experience.

*NEPOMAK is the World Organisation for Young Overseas Cypriots and is run day-to-day by 150 volunteers aged 18-30 from around the world. It has activities in 40 cities globally and directly reaches 15,000 young overseas Cypriots. We are always looking for more enthusiastic, driven, young individuals to help develop our organisation. By getting involved, our members have the chance to learn new skills, challenge themselves and develop life-long friendships. Sign up as a member for free at www.nepomak.org/signup today or email info@nepomak.org for more information.