#GreekStrong: Panayiota Asimacos’s Mission to Bring the Greek Community Closer Together Through Networking, Philanthropy, and Religion
On March 3rd, 2023, Panayiota Asimacos received an email from the church secretary asking for donations for an upcoming event. An active member of her local parish, Panayiota reached out to local Greek businesses in the area asking for donations with the promise of advertisement at the event in return.
From that day, Panayiota took her idea from the church fundraiser and decided to apply it to a larger scale: create a community for Greek businesses to network while giving back to the larger community. And so, the Hellenic Boston Businesses Unite (HBBU) was born.
HBBU is a nonprofit organization that brings together Greek professionals in the New England area to support one another through charitable donations. Through HBBU, Boston-based Greek entrepreneurs’ network, uplift their community, and unite in selfless acts driven by honor and Philotimo.
“That’s what I remember growing up, Greeks supporting one another,” said Panayiota.
But for some reason, many Greeks have lost that sense of community that Panayiota and many others have grown up to know. Instead, some Greeks in smaller communities have taken a competitive stance, rather than a supportive one. Panayiota’s mission through HBBU is to cultivate a shared sense of community founded on mutual religion, culture, and support.
“We should be as God wants us to be, as one big family,” said Panayiota. “I understand it’s a competitive world, but I think we need to go back to old-school traditions where we help each other out.”
The core values of Ancient Greeks were simple: honesty, integrity, and virtue. Unfortunately, the diaspora has lost sight of these virtues, and Panayiota believes her organization will bring the Boston community back to its roots.
Her mission does not stop there. Panayiota’s mission for HBBU extends beyond networking among professionals and encourages members to support one another in good faith through charitable actions. In a word, philotimo, or “love of honor.”
In the summer, HBBU announced partnerships with Metropolis of Boston Camp and The SOTIR Center in Thessaloniki.
Future aspirations for HBBU include fostering partnerships with the Center for Students with Disabilities, Boston Children’s Hospital, and charitable organizations in Greece to support families and children in need.
“My goal is to create an Amazon wishlist for Greek children who are going to the hospital so our members can click on the Amazon Wishlist and anonymously or non-anonymously donate to help our kids,” said Panayiota. “To me, it’s all about giving and giving to those in need.”
Although ambitious, I have faith in Panayiota’s mission and organization, and you should too. Through HBBU, our community can be reminded that we are not in competition with one another.
“We’re brothers and sisters, we’re all in this together,” said Panayiota. “The closer we are, the more powerful we are. We are Greek-strong.”
