Listening to the Next Generation >> William

When I look at my Greek grandfather, who is now in his early 80s, I never forget what he told me about immigrating to Canada with 38 dollars in his pocket. I look at what he’s accomplished and feel that if I turn out to be half the man he is, I’d consider myself lucky.

Got Greek? interviews William B. from Richard Stockton College

My mother’s entire family is Greek. Her grandparents came from from Kerasounda in the Pontos area by the Black Sea, which is now known as Turkey. They were forced out by the Turks during what my family and I view as the Pontian Greek Genocide. Anyway, my relatives made it to Athens and then lived in Kalithea. My great-grandmother on my yiayia’s [grandmother’s] side was the youngest of six. Her eldest sister got a job as a chef in Xanthi. That’s how my grandmother’s side of the family settled in that area. My pappou’s [grandfather] side stayed in Kalithea until they immigrated. My grandmother and grandfather were married in April of 1954. About a month later, my grandfather left and went to Canada. He had gotten a job with Air Canada. Three months later, my grandmother left and then my aunt was born right after. Two years after that, my mother was born. All of her siblings came one right after the other. And then in the early 1970s, I believe that’s when they moved to the United States from Canada. I’m actually the first person on my mother’s side of the family to be born in the United States.

Q: What about your dad’s side?

A: His mother’s family has been here almost since before the Revolutionary War, out in Iowa in the Midwest. On his father’s side, his grandfather— my great-grandfather— was from Sicily and worked on the family farm and winery. He didn’t want to go to school because he really wanted to go to the United States and his father wouldn’t allow him. He continued to work the fields. One day, he got tired of it, and left not on great terms. His wife— my great-grandmother— had a brother who was already here and they immigrated.

Q: How does your Greek heritage play out in your life?

A: It is a big part of my life. My parents were married in a Greek Orthodox Church, not the one we currently go to because it wasn’t built, yet. My brother and I were baptized Greek Orthodox and we went to church every Sunday. My dad converted about eight years ago to Greek Orthodoxy. He was Catholic before. I was a member and still am of the Hellenic Dancers of New Jersey. I am taking time off now because of school. It has been a big thing for me. I did GOYA [Greek Orthodox Youth Association] and Sunday school. My mother now teaches the dance group. She assists the Presbytera [the priest’s wife] at the church. Every Monday, there is dance class. She’s involved in the community and it has trickled down to me and my brother. My father is very much involved as well. He is on the Parish Council for the church. We all work at the festival.

Q: With your American friends, how do you explain your Greek heritage to them?

A: I jokingly sometimes tell them to just watch My Big Fat Greek Wedding and that they’ll get most of it in a nutshell of what we do. But with the background of the church and religion, I explain it to them. They find it interesting because it is something different. It is not something different that you see all the time like Italian, French, or Hispanic that you see a lot here in the United States. Greek culture is something new and different and interesting to them.

Q: Do you think My Big Fat Greek Wedding helped or hurt the perception of Greek culture?

A: I would say it helped more than it hurt. Some of the things were a little ridiculous in the movie but they did it for the purpose of the movie. It captured the whole closeness of the family and our culture as a whole more than the comedic part of it.

Q: What is important to you about Greek culture?

A: The family values. I try to go to Greece every summer to see my aunts and uncles. They all live with my cousins, one above the other in the same building. There are downfalls but it is good because I regret now not hearing the stories from my great-grandmother, who passed away 11 years ago, about what she went through moving from Turkey to Greece and when she got married and having children at a young age. I regret not learning those aspects. So when I go there and see how they live their everyday lives there, it makes me a little upset that I didn’t get that with my great-grandmother. So I try to sit with my aunts who are in their 80s and 90s to get the stories about being in Turkey. I try to understand what they went through because the Pontian Greek Genocide is something you never hear about.

Q: How old were you when you first went to Greece?

A: I believe I was one and a half years old.

Q: Does your family go every year?

A: My grandparents go every year. Usually, we try to go every other year but for the last four years, I have been going consistently. We have a house. It’s about an hour outside of Thessaloniki. It’s the midpoint from Thessaloniki and Kavala in Macedonia. We have the beach house there and we go to see all the relatives and just relax.

Q: How do you feel when you are in Greece?

A: It’s great. I love it: the customs, traditions, and things that we do. We can be who we are as to being compared to when we are here. Not that I don’t mind answering questions from other people. But it feels good to not feel that someone is double guessing what you are doing and giving you that weird look. Sure, I fit in here in the United States. But with our culture, it’s good to not have people look at you like you are from another planet especially when Greek dancing.

Q: How do you identify yourself: Greek, Greek American, American with Greek roots, Italian, something else?

A: When they ask me what are you, I say Greek and Italian. But if someone asks where I come from, I say the United States. That’s where I was born and raised. I’m very proud to be an American but I am also very proud of my Greek and Italian backgrounds and the stories that my family went through to come to this country. To me, it seems like their story is only possible here. When I look at my Greek grandfather, who is now in his early 80s, I never forget what he told me about immigrating to Canada with 38 dollars in his pocket. I look at what he’s accomplished and feel that if I turn out to be half the man that he is, I’d consider myself lucky. He and my grandmother made so many sacrifices along the way. My grandmother was more of the homemaker and my pappou [grandfather] would work 14 to 15 hours a day and go to school at night to learn how to read, write, and speak English.

Q: What did he do for work when he came here?

A: He started as a mechanic fixing the engines of the airplanes like 747s. He worked his way up to be an inspector. Then in the late 1960s and early 1970s, he left and started an insulation business here in the United States with my uncle. That lasted about 10 years. Then he went to work for Hess for 10 years and he has been retired since 1993. He had a good run.

Q: What are some ways that you stay connected to Greek culture while you are here at college?

A: The group of friends I have back at home, the majority are Greek. We hang out together and we talk Gringlish [Greek and English combined]. There are some who are first generation from Greece, some are second or third. So we throw it out there. I don’t think I would ever lose it because it is such a big part of my life and growing up. My cousins would give me CDs every year. Now, with technology and everything, it’s easy to stay connected and not lose your culture or heritage.

Q: Do you have objects in your room that connect you to your Greek heritage?

A: I have a Greek calendar that has pictures of the islands and stuff like that. When it’s winter, I get to look at a picture of a beautiful beach, summer time, and sunset and I really wish I was there right now. I also have a little icon, and pictures of my relatives who I call from time to time.

Q: Are you taking any Greek-related classes here at school?

A: Yes, I am taking Greek language. I grew up with both Greek and English in the house. After I was born, my grandmother used to watch me while my mom was at work and my great-grandmother lived with her. She knew no English. So for six to seven hours a day, I would just have Greek around me all the time. I am taking Greek now because the Greek I know is slang that I learned from conversations and the TV. I am one of those Greek school dropouts. At the time, my mother just wanted me to learn how to speak. Now that I have the oral part down, I might as well freshen up and work on the grammar, reading and writing. Going to Greece consecutively the last four years has made it easier to understand things and read the subtitles and the signs.

Q: Do you see yourself taking more Greek-related classes in the future?

A: Well, hopefully next semester they have the next level. I hope to take it. With my degree, I need two semesters of an intermediate language course. I got excused one semester and I got to take the elementary level. Now, if they do have the intermediate next semester, I could take that. This is for the international business degree.

Q: Considering your major and background, would you consider working in Greece?

A: It has always crossed my mind. But lately, you have seen the way that they have been doing things over there. My family always busts my chops because even though I am half-Greek, I am always a little bit more into the Greek culture and heritage than my mother and cousins who are all 100% Greek. They always joke around that the next time I go to Greece, I am going to find my wife. Just kidding around and stuff like that. I’ve said it’s a place to retire. Would I love to go there on business and work there a week at a time and come back? Yes. That’s why I went into international business, not solely for that but to see other places around the world and broaden my knowledge of other people because I have been fortunate enough to travel the past four years to very different places. I went to China two years ago, down to Australia and then to Central and Eastern Europe in 2005. The Chinese and how they live is completely different from the Europeans. Night and day. Retire in Greece, yes probably. But to actually live and work there, I’d have to work for an ambassador or something like that. Would be great. We’ll see.

Q: How important is it for you to preserve your Greek culture in the future?

A: I think it is important for everyone, whatever culture you come from, to preserve it. That’s what this country was made of. It wasn’t just one set of cultures. We are a melting pot. It will be important to let our children know about their culture and heritage, so they don’t forget where they come from. Not saying I’m not proud to be an American and everything. But I am also proud of the story of what my grandparents went through and I don’t want my kids or grandkids forgetting that story. If my relatives didn’t come here, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now. I’ll tell my kids the family stories. I think that’s the only way of keep it, by telling stories.

Q: Thank you for the interview.

A: Thank you.