“Take in the sights, take in the sounds, take in the smells,” Gillales adds. “Try some food that you haven’t tried before, maybe get out of your comfort zone – do a little bit of Greek dancing and just immerse yourself in Greek culture.”

Greek Day started in the 1970s under different leadership. In 2005, the HCCBC took over as the official organizers – seeing the festival through the pandemic years.

Commemorating Greektown

Kitsilano was chosen as the festival site because of its significance to the local Greek community. Gillales still recognizes the area as “Vancouver’s historic Greektown.”

“When Greek immigrants came to Vancouver to start their new lives and build and create their families and their legacies, everybody came together in Kitsilano on West Broadway,” she adds. “Back in the day, there was a ton of Greek businesses; there were restaurants, tavernas, bakeries, clothing stores.”

The neighbourhood used to house many cornerstones of the Greek community, including St. George’s Greek Orthodox Cathedral which relocated to Arbutus Street in the early 1970s to accommodate their growing congregation. The church shares a venue with the Hellenic Community of Vancouver, which offers Greek dance classes and language lessons.

Alongside these organizations, the HCCBC celebrates and shares Greek heritage, values and cultures in B.C. A non-profit organization, the HCCBC has organized golf charity tournaments, hosted concerts and even welcomed the ambassador of Greece to Canada, Ekaterina Dimakis.

A cornerstone of their programing has been Greek Days – which went on a hiatus in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The festival then adapted a drive-through format in 2021, allowing food sales to continue.

“2022 is when we went back on Broadway. It was a very scaled down version of the festival, though,” Gillales shares. “We had everything spaced out, not as many people, but we still wanted to make a point to be back in the community for that year.”

Gillales has been on HCCBC’s board of directors since December 2018. She was encouraged to join by a friend who had already been a part of the organization.

“[My friend] was like, ‘This is a really good opportunity [to] get involved in the community,’” she recalls. “Our goal is really just to make sure that everybody has a positive and safe experience and enjoy their day with their families in Greektown.”

Overcoming challenges

Over the years, the festival has overcome multiple challenges. Gillales recalls how prior to the pandemic – in 2019 – sponsorship money was easier to access. The ongoing implementation and talks of tariffs have also affected their partnerships.

“There’s a fair amount of sponsors who may have participated, but they chose not to because of the tariff uncertainty,” she shares. “We’ve tried to work as best as we can to keep our costs as low as we can, so that we can continue enhancing the festival.”

In the midst of these challenges, Greek Day also has much to celebrate. With nearly 120 vendors expected this year, Gillales shares they have already sold out of vendor spots. Among the list of vendors are Parthenon Market, The Greek by Anatoli, and the Greek Seniors Society of East Vancouver. Participants can expect booths from local artisans and a lot of Greek food, especially dessert.

“The most popular ones are loukoumades, which are circular Greek honey covered donuts,” Gillales shares. “So, they’re like a fried donut and then they get topped in a honey syrup, and sprinkled with sesame and cinnamon.”

Baklava ice cream sundaes will also be served. Other food options include spinach pies, cheese pies, lamb chops and the famous souvlaki (Greek wraps). This year will also see the festival add a second stage, called the heritage stage, which will continue this tradition of food, in a slightly different way.

“Our heritage stage [is] going to have our cooking demonstrations: featuring local Greek chefs in Vancouver and local community leaders,” Gillales shares, adding the Vancouver-based band Zougla will also perform. “In the evening, we’ve got a tap dance performance and a DJ.”

Their main stage will also have live entertainment from two Greek music playing bands – Epistrophes and Yannis Sahamis & Friends –throughout the day. This stage will also host a loukoumades(Greek donuts) eating contest.

Carrying traditions forward

Gillales is a Greek dancer herself. In fact, her favourite memory of Greek Day is her first time performing on stage with her dance group. She recalls being shocked at the number of attendees.

“When you’re at Greek Day, and you’re just walking around, you don’t really understand how many people are there,” she reflects. “But when you’re standing on the stage, you’re higher up, and you really have a visual of everybody. It’s crazy to see the amount of people who are at Greek Day.”

According to her, Greek dance is diverse: different regions develop their own traditions. The dances are most often used for celebrations – at weddings, baptisms, and birthdays as well as religious and cultural holidays.

“It’s essentially Greek folk dancing; a lot of it is done in a circle usually with six to 15 steps, repeated,” she shares. “There’s a few dances that go from region to region, but it’s very interesting to research all the different dances and have an understanding of why certain dances are danced; or why certain regions dance a little bit more sombre, as opposed to happier.”

The dances are taught through the Greek Community Centre or the many local Greek associations, such as the Cretan Association of B.C. According to Gillales, these associations were established to connect those with a shared geographical heritage.

“Greek Day is their biggest fundraiser of the year,” the general secretary adds. “This is a really great opportunity, not only for them to get their name out, but to be able to make some money for their organization so that they can do programming throughout the year.”

The festival is not only an opportunity to celebrate her cultural heritage – it is also a chance to welcome others in experiencing Greek culture. For Gillales, a hallmark of Greek culture is its hospitality, which is embodied by the festival’s value of inclusivity.

“I think overtime with most communities, as the years go on, people tend to be just less and less involved,” Gillales shares. “But I think it’s really important to prioritize the heritage, the history and the culture.”

Greek Day is one of many events celebrating June as Greek Heritage Month. Other events include a free ceramics making event on June 13 and a Greek dance showcase at Kitsilano Showboat stage on June 20. Apart from the HCCBC, Surrey’s Greek community will also host their Greek Food Festival from now until June 15.

For more information, see www.greekday.com