LANCASTER, PA – Several Pennsylvania cities outrank Lancaster in population, but a scant few in quintessential small city charm.
Home to Franklin & Marshall college as well as a few other institutions of higher learning, Lancaster differs from its larger counterparts – Philadelphia in the east, Pittsburgh in the west, insofar as it is blended neither by the Southern New Jersey flavor of the former or the Midwestern aura of the latter. In many ways, Lancaster is the very embodiment of “Pennsylvania.”
The artsy, foody, small city is also quite ethnically diverse, and as with just about all melting pot American communities, Greeks are abound.
Greek immigrants settled in Lancaster literally at the turn of the 20th century, and within 20 years, established the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church.
Four decades after that, in 1960, after the community continued to grow and flourish with an influx of Greek islanders – mostly from Kos and Chios – a new Byzantine Church was built where more than a half century later, it still sits on a three-acre plot of land: 64 Hershey Avenue.
A PAN-ORTHODOX PARISH
Unlike other parishes that have dwindled over the years, Annunciation – currently with over 600 families – continues to grow. What is particularly notable about this parish is how truly diverse it is: though the majority is of Greek origin, there is some sizable representation of Orthodox from Albania, Bulgaria, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Poland, Russia, Syria, and Ukraine. There are also a number of parishioners with longstanding roots in the United States, who converted to Orthodoxy from other faiths.
Annuciation’s reach is wide, with people traveling miles and miles, foregoing other Greek Orthodox Churches, to attend – and not only for its liturgies, but also for its food!
Throughout Lancaster County, beyond the city limits into the ruralmost areas, posted on trees of large dairy farms, where ample populations of cows, goats, and sheep can be seen grazing in the vast green fields on any given day, were signs depicting a GREEK BAZAAR – NOV. 7 AND 8.
STANDING ROOM ONLY
And this is no ordinary bazaar. Cars literally line up around the block for Annuciation’s 57th annual festival, for the take-out option (though there is music to enjoy, some people are all about the food). For those preferring to sit a spell, there are two very well-organized lines (yes, “Greek” and “organized” can belong in the same sentence), directing groups to a pay one price platter or a la carte path.
Another very useful feature of this Bazaar is the actual non-food items, which range from Greek books, icons, CDs, and other trinkets, as well as rooms that sell olives, halvah, various types of Greek cheeses, and other such items. Those who live in Astoria and other enormous Greek communities don’t have to wait for their church bazaar to stock up on Greek foodstuffs, but for Central Pennsylvanians – many of whom have to make an entire day out of traveling to and from such a market – the Annunciation Bazaar is also a practical shopping spree.
One parishioner who chose to remain anonymous told TNH, with a sigh, that “no alcoholic beverages are permitted.” While that is a position to be respected and admired, this attendee, too, wishes that a glass of ouzo and serving of octopus was available.
Nonetheless, all of the usual Greek staples and desserts (the loukoumades are the hot ticket item), were quite good.
The alcohol-free environment aside, it was enjoyable to drink a frappe with lunch because again, if most Central Pennsylvania Greeks want a real frappe, there aren’t many places they can find one – other than at their own house or that of a fellow Greek!
“We serve about 10,000 platters of food, including chicken in Greek sauce, pastitsio, Greek-style rice, or yiaprakia (which is what dolmades are called on Chios and in other parts of Greece), a Greek salad, and a roll,” Bazaar co-Chair Alexandra Schramm told TNH. She explained that preparations for the annual Bazaar “begin in May with harvesting and processing the grape leaves, which are grown right on our church property in the fertile Lancaster soil. This produces the best and most tender leaves. These leaves are used to make the 28,000-30,000 yiaprakia that are all hand rolled with a mixture of ground beef, rice, and spices, a true labor of love! Six weeks prior to our bazaar, we begin our kitchen fellowship and prepare specialty items, usually one per week. Tiropites, spanakopites, yiaprakia, 2000 diples, 8400 pieces of baklava, and countless Greek cookies, koulourakia, finikia, kourambiedes, Greek cakes, ravani, karidopita, over 420 loaves of sweet bread, 385 pans of pastitsio, and rice pudding. On each day of the event, our famous loukoumades are served fresh, hot with a crunch and pillowy center, souvlaki and pita are grilled, and chicken are pastitsio are baked.”
GOD WANTS YOU TO EAT TOGETHER!
The seemingly endless drive-thru takeout notwithstanding, Fr. Alexander Goussetis reminds in the Bazaar program that “food plays a prominent role throughout the Bible. Meals were much more than occasions for satisfying hunger,” he explains. “Rather, persons who ate and drank together were bound to one another by friendship and mutual obligation.
“Meals were eaten in conjunction with the making of a covenant between persons or between God and his people.”
Fr. Goussetis also describes how “Jesus’ table fellowship with his followers was an important feature of his ministry. Several times in the Gospel accounts, a meal was the setting for important teachings of Jesus, even describing the Kingdom of Heaven as a banquet.”
By extension, the Bazaar is “our community’s expression of hospitality, unity, and celebration of faith.”
And, it shows. There was hardly an empty seat, or parking space, to be found.
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