Daughters of Penelope

Penelope’s Pen 

As we close out our year and look forward to a restful and enjoyable summer, the Sisters of Antiklea Chapter are pleased to announce the recipient of our annual scholarship for 2025: Olympia Theofanos. We wish her continuing success in her studies and hope that our scholarship support helps her reach her goals. We are also happy to announce that our Penelope Sister of the Year for 2025 is our Treasurer, Kathy Bazianos. She has done an excellent job of caring for our finances while also assisting in our various initiatives throughout the year. We are very lucky to have her!

 The keynote speaker for this year’s AHEPA scholarship Luncheon was Mr. John Woolard. He is the son of one of our sisters, Anna Woolard. He gave an excellent speech to inspire all the graduates, and his mother is justifiably proud of him. We share her feelings of pride in him. What an excellent choice of speaker!

 We remind everyone of our summer Book Club meeting, which will take place at 5:00 p.m. on June 14th at Pegasus Restaurant. Join us for an enjoyable evening over an engaging book and some good Greek cuisine! We will be discussing The Women by Kristen Hannah. It is a moving novel and may be of interest to the men of our community given its setting during the Vietnam War era. Copies are available at your local library or for purchase online. You do not have to be a member of our chapter to attend the Book Club discussion. Please let Sister Kathryn Geranios know if you will be coming by emailing her at katgeranios@gmail.com  as soon as possible so that she may give the restaurant an accurate count of attendees. Dinner and beverages are on our own, but an appetizer tray will be offered for attendees. 

 Finally, we are very fortunate to have all our current officers agree to serve next year. They are: President--Jackie Harmon, Vice President--Connie Chavez, Secretary--Zoe Mouris, and Treasurer--Kathy Bazianos. They were re-elected by unanimous vote.  Our officers, including Penelope Sister of the year Kathy Bazianos, are shown in the accompanying photo.

Chapter Officers for 2024-2025

Jackie Harmon, President

Connie Chavez, Vice President

Zoe Mouris, Recording Secretary

Shelia Demetriadis, Corresponding Secretary

Kathy Bazianos, Treasurer

Daughters of Penelope

The Daughters of Penelope (DOP) was the realization of Alexandra Apostolides' dream.  Her desire was to create a woman's organization and because of her perseverance and the encouragement of her husband Dr. Emanuel Apostolides, a devoted AHEPAN, she formed EOS Chapter #1 with 25 charter members on November 16,1929 in San Francisco, California. The objectives of the Daughters of Penelope are to promote Hellenism, Education, Philanthropy, Civic Responsibility, and Family and Individual Excellence.     


Who is Penelope?

In ancient Greek legend, Penelope was the wife of Odysseus, King of Ithaca. Odysseus left her and their son, Telemachus when he went to the Trojan War. When the war ended, many mishaps and weary wanderings kept him from returning home. As time went on and he did not return, many suitors claimed her hand and her kingdom. For a long while she put them off with a plea that she must finish weaving a robe for Laertes, her father-in-law. However, every night she unraveled what she had woven by day, thus remaining faithful to the memory 0f Odysseus and steadfast to the sanctity of her home.

Finally, Odysseus appeared after an absence of twenty years to reclaim his wife, his throne, and his home. In the name of our Order, the Daughters of Penelope, the word Penelope symbolizes all the noble virtues, of kindness, tolerance, unselfishness, truth, goodness, beauty, self-improvement, purity, loyalty, and patience, which were evident in the character of Penelope. As her Daughters, we strive to exemplify and uphold these same values in today's world.

Antiklea Projects and Events:

Red Tent Project for Homeless Women

Koulourakia Baking

Holy Land Crafts Booth

Tsourekia, Koulourakia, and Psalms CD Sale

New Year’s Vasilopita Sale


Charities that DOP Supports: 

Daughters of Penelope Foundation, Inc. Scholarships
Penelope House-Domestic Family Violence Center: Mobile, AL
Penelope House-Domestic Family Violence Center: Brockton, MA
Penelopean Foundation Day Care Center: Athens, Greece
University of Miami, Sylvester Cancer Research Center
Saint Basil Academy-Home for young children