Ionian Village is a private summer camp facility of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, located on the shores of the Ionian Sea, in western Peloponnese, Greece. Over 16,000 Greek-Americans have visited the camp since its establishment in 1969.[1]
Ionian Village operates a summer travel camp program for Greek-American youth. Each July and August, several hundred young adults in various age groups, from 12 to 18 years, fly together from New York to Athens and travel by motor coach to the camp, located near Vartholomio[2], west of the regional trading town of Amaliada. Volunteer staff for the camp are selected competitively from culturally and linguistically qualified Orthodox Christian college students from across North America.
The camp program of Ionian Village features a blend of athletics, aquatics, arts and crafts, cultural activities, Greek language education, religious instruction and travel to Greek historical sites such as ancient Olympia, Delphi and Zakynthos. Daily routine at the camp closely simulates the blend and pace of religious, recreational and cultural activities as may be experienced in a typical Greek village. Camp sessions are 18 days in length, ending with tours of the Acropolis of ancient Athens and islands in the Saronic Gulf. Travel destinations may change from year to year in order to cover a range of important religious, historical or cultural sites across the country.
The camp was established in 1969 at the initiative of Archbishop Iakovos of America (of the then-Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America) as a means of fostering cultural and religious ties to Greece for the children of early- and mid-twentieth century Greek immigrants in United States and Canada.
The original land grant of 2,840 acres—11,500 stremmata (see stremma) or 11.5 square kilometers—of pine forest and virgin beachfront on the north-west coast of Ilia Prefecture, on the Peloponnese mainland was secured by the then-Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North & South America in 1966 as a gift from the government of Greece, with supportive sponsorship from Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis.[3]
In mid-July 1975, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis visited the Ionian Village to officiate at the opening of a new recreational building dedicated in memory of Aristotle Onassis.[4] See this photo of the commemorative plaque unveiled by Mrs. Onassis at the opening.