On Saturday, February 15, 2025, the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the Metropolis of Chicago gave a series of presentations and hosted an Archon vendor table during the YAL Chicago Conference, which took place at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in downtown Chicago.
During a lunchtime session, with the blessings of His Eminence Metropolitan Nathanael of Chicago, Pilgrimage of Discovery Co-Chairs Archon Hon. Jeffery Chrones and Mrs. Hellena Chrones, along with Pilgrimage of Discovery participants Marina Dimas (’23), Peter Kokkinias (’24), Deanna Kolas (’23), Sophia Looney (’24), and George Valarcel (’23) spoke to an audience of approximately 700 attendees about the current challenges facing the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the faithful in Turkey, the Archons’ mission, and the Pilgrimage of Discovery initiative — a seven day, all expense paid journey through Constantinople.
The Pilgrimage of Discovery program sends Orthodox Christian young adults ages 23 to 30 years old to Constantinople annually to learn about Orthodoxy, the Patriarchate, the history of the Church, the challenges facing the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and the experiences of the remaining Orthodox people living in Asia Minor. Applications for the 2025 Pilgrimage of Discovery have closed for this year.
POD Chair Hellena Chrones noted there has been an uptick in interest about the Pilgrimage of Discovery program. “After our presentation, I spoke to many young adults from across the country, and discovered the word about the POD program is definitely out there,” said Chrones. “We polled the crowd during the presentation and were very surprised at how many young adults were aware of the Ecumenical Patriarch and Ecumenical Patriarchate — a marked difference from the first year we presented at the Metropolis of Chicago YAL Conference. We’re doing good work getting the word out about the POD and raising awareness about the Ecumenical Patriarchate among our youth.”
She added that the Pilgrimage of Discovery documentary, created by the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate after the inaugural trip in 2023, was viewed 47,000 times in the last month alone.
During the conference, Archon Hon. Anthony C. Kyriakopoulos also conducted two workshops on the topic of navigating your career while being true to your Greek Orthodox values, discussing how his experiences and career have been shaped by the main values of the Orthodox faith: humility, empathy, respect, love and service. “These values are cultivated through our family, friends and faith,” said Kyriakopoulos. “In today’s world you must be able to navigate being successful with staying true to who you are within your Greek Orthodox faith.”
In addition, the Archons hosted a booth during the conference to answer questions from attendees and distribute Archon and Pilgrimage of Discovery materials and merchandise.
To learn more, visit archons.org for more information about the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in America and pilgrimageofdiscovery.org for more information about the Pilgrimage of Discovery initiative.
