A memorial service (Trisagion) was arranged by Archbishop Demetrios of America for Greek expatriate Andreas Panagopoulos who died tragically in East Harlem, New York, when the building in which he lived collapsed following a gas explosion. The memorial service took place in the chapel of St. Paul, in the Archdiocese of Manhattan, and was attended by his brother, Aris Panagopoulos, close friend Evangelos Alkimos and other acquaintances and friends of the “excellent and original Greek artist.”
The Greek Diaspora in the USA is in deep mourning, sharing the grief of the 42-year-old artist’s family, said the Primate of the Orthodox Church in the United States.
His partner of 13 years, Lisbeth Perez, stated that Andreas loved Greece very much and he wanted to eventually return to his country. “I want to remember him as a great and unique man,” she said, adding how sad she was that, because of the explosion, she now had nothing to remember him by.
Andreas Panagopoulos came from Kalamata in the South of Greece, where his mother currently resides. After the necessary procedures through the consular authorities, his body will be transferred to Greece for burial.
The memorial service was also attended by Consul General of Greece in New York, Georgios Iliopoulos, as well as the Secretary General for Gender Equality, Vasso Kollias, who earlier had a private meeting with Archbishop Demetrios about her participation and work at the 58th UN Commission Session on the Status of Women, where she represents Greece as the presiding country of the EU Council.
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