36 THE QUEENS COURIER • BUZZ • NOVEMBER 26, 2020 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Astoria’s Athens Square to host Christmas
tree lighting ceremony next month
BY QNS STAFF
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Call it the “Miracle on 30th Avenue.”
Astoria business leaders have come
together to bring a little – much-needed
– Christmas cheer to the area this
year and formed the Athens Square
Tree Committee, comprised of Gus
Lambropoulos, Elias Fillas, Tonino Sacco,
Gus Antonopoulos, Luca Di Ciero, Kirk
Karabela and Andrew Latos.
On Friday, Nov. 20, a 30-foot-tall,
16.5-foot-wide Norway Spruce tree was
delivered to Athens Square Park, where
those who donated it hope it will serve as
a beacon of light and faith in the midst of
the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It will be the tallest tree ever installed
in Astoria, Long Island City, or possibly
in Queens, according to the Parks
Department archives,” said Gus
Lambropoulos, the president of Agora
Asset Management. “It will be decorated
in multicolored lights, with a star atop, and
fl anked by Greek columns and statues of
Socrates and Plato – but it is a multicultural
tree that signifi es peace, unity and hope.
Unity will be at an all-time high.”
Th e tree, donated by Gus and Maria
Lambropoulos, Sacco & Fillas, Th e Rock
Health and Fitness, NYSpace Finders,
Alma Bank and Farenga Funeral Homes,
will be a destination for the community –
and a way to bolster business.
“Everyone knows Astoria and its festivities,
now we are fi lling in the gaps for
Christmas,” said Luca Di Ciero, founder
and CEO, NYSpace Finders. “Astoria has
a special place in my heart. I started my
offi ce here because I believe in the neighborhood.
In these uncertain times, I’m
excited to see joy come to 30thAvenue.”
Once lit on Dec. 2, residents far and
wide can enjoy the beauty of the tree –
with social distancing, of course.
“Th ere is no power for change greater
than the community discovering what
it can do, and this Christmas event will
be symbolic of something we need,” said
Gus Antonopoulos, of the Antonopoulos
Funeral Home.
Th e spruce will shine from Dec. 2 at 6
p.m., when there will be a tree-lighting
ceremony — complete with carolers —
until Jan. 20.
“It’s going to be great,” said Maria
Markou, Esq., the founder and president
of Markou Global Legal Group LLC. “Th e
tree will bring unity and family, and for us
as Greeks, family is most important.”
And the organizers are already looking
ahead, as they plan to make this an annual
Christmas tradition.
“We are already looking to next year,”
said Elias N. Fillas, of Sacco & Fillas, LLP.
Photo by Dean Moses
“It’s going to be like Rockefeller Center,
but in the heart of Queens.”
Sponsors include Gus & Maria
Lambropoulos; Elias Fillas & Family;
Tonino Sacco & Family; Luca Di Ciero
& Family; Fillas & Sacco, LLP; Farenga
Funeral Home; Alma Bank; Rock,Health
& Fitness; Mentis Photography Inc.;
Uptick Mulimedia; Th e Valias Group,
Inc.; and Athens Square Inc.
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