Feature Stories - WWII Remembered
Defending Democracy: US and Greece in World War II
From April to September 1944, these teams (consisting of 147 men) were inserted into Nazi Occupied Greece to work with the Greek Resistance (Andartes) in fighting occupying forces. An important objective was to harass and slow down the German withdrawal, and kill and wound Germans and destroy their equipment, to reduce their effectiveness in the defence of Germany. The story of the Greek-American OGs was highly classified for more than 40 years. They returned home never knowing the enormous impact their mission had on events in Greece and most never spoke of their experience with the O.S.S for many years, even to their families. Sixty-four years later, Greek-American Veterans of Greek Operations Group II, were awarded Bronze Stars during a ceremony on Sunday, May 18, 2008, at the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York. See also: |
In February 1943, at the height the Second World War, the Greek “Government in Exile,” sought help from the U.S. military in support of the Greek Resistance against the German Occupation. The Office of Strategic Services formed top-secret 
Forging the Aussie Greek connection (Herald Sun, 15.04.2008)
But before the wave of immigration made Melbourne one of the world's biggest "Greek" cities, our nations had forged a brotherhood in blood. It came from April 1941, with the brave but ill-fated efforts of a poorly organised British-Anzac force to defend Greece from Nazi invasion. Read more... |
The landscapes and the peoples of Melbourne and Greece seem to have almost merged in some ways. The cafes and lounges around Lonsdale St have the feel of Athens.
A Greek Australian war artist
A few years later he covered the Indonesian War of Independence, and befriended President Sukarno of Indonesia. His considerable number of works from that era are housed in the National Library and the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, with others held at the Imperial War Museum in London. Rafty has caricatured politicians, sportspeople, and entertainers. His work has been exhibited worldwide and over 15,000 of his caricatures have been featured in newspapers and magazines. In 1985, Rafty was awarded the Gold Cross of Mount Athos, one of Greece’s highest honours, and in 1991 he was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for services to the media. Rafty still leads the Anzac Day march at the head of the Australian War Correspondents Society. Read more: |
Tony Rafty OAM (born Tony Raftopoulos; 12 October 1915) is a Greek Australian artist, who specialises in drawing caricatures. During World War II, Rafty served as a war artist and journalist for the Australian Army, serving in New Guinea, Borneo and Singapore, where he sketched the surrender of the Japanese.
Tales from WWII (Parachuting to Grandma's)
Antinopoulos belonged to a small group of specially trained infantrymen called Operational Groups operating under the classified command of the U.S. Office of Strategic Services. These men came from various backgrounds — Greek, Italian, French, Chinese, Norwegian, Yugoslav — and infiltrated occupied places around Europe to help the local forces resist the Nazis According to Antinopoulos, there were about 30 Greek-American OGs whose mission was to make the Nazis withdraw from Greece and pay a high price. The mission, however, wasn’t widely known. Even after the war ended, records of their actions were sealed for 40 years, which meant their war record wasn’t fully recognized.
|
The story of Greek-American WWII veteran Charles Antinopoulos - whose war service was honoured by the Greek Government - was recently publicised by local press reports ("Greek Hero", Beaver County Times and Allgheny Times, 27.01.2008). Charles Antinopoulos, 84, of Harmony Township, was honoured with a gold plaque from the Hellenic National Defense General Staff, on Greek Armed Forces Day, November 19, at the Embassy of the Hellenic Republic in Washington, D.C.
Archbishop Demetrios of America was awarded the inaugural 'Damaskinos Award'
"The Damaskinos Award" was named for the ever-memorable Archbishop Damaskinos of Athens (1891-1949), who risked life and liberty to rescue Greek Jews from certain death at the hands of the Nazi occupation. The award carries the very image of Archbishop Damaskinos, as it was recorded on the cover of the October 1, 1945 Time Magazine, with the subtitle His country is a battleground of titanic forces.
|
In a gala celebration of the American Sephardi Federation and the American Friends of the
Feature Stories - Main |
Athens Moments |
Greece Uncovered |
WWII Remembered |
Living in Greece |
