NorCal Festival Celebrates Greek Traditions For 63rd Year

STOCKTON, CA — Saint Basil Greek Orthodox Christian Church welcomed visitors from around Stockton and Bay Area for its 63rd annual Greek Festival being held in Stockton this weekend.

The church has been celebrating and promoting Greek customs and traditions since 1959.

According to Tom Chiarchianis, the chairman of the Greek Festival, the festival in Stockton was the second one in California, when it first started 63 years ago. Oakland was the first to celebrate the Greek Festival in the state. Until 1987, the festival was held at the Civic Auditorium.

"We came here [to the church] in 1987, and we have been on the church grounds ever since," Chiarchianis said. Today, the festival is celebrated with booths for a variety of Greek food and drinks, paired with live Greek music on the stage. As a part of the festival, attendees also get to tour Saint Basil Greek Orthodox Christian Church and light candles.

"The Greek Orthodox religion and the Christian religion are intertwined," said Chiarchianis. "We also have church tours, and our priest, Father Pete talks about that aspect of it- how it all ties in with the Greek culture. So, you're going to find a lot of Greek food staples that you would find if you went to Greece."

On Friday, the festival kicked off at 4 p.m. with many returning attendees from previous years, who wanted to eat their favorite food and have a good time. As Friday's temperature reached a high of 106 F, the festivalgoers cooled off with beers and coffee frappes, which were a hit with the crowd. Baklava sundae, loukoumades, calamari with fries and gyros were served, among many other Greek dishes.

"We have been coming here for, oh gosh, like the past 8-10 years," said Nicole Hodgson, who was at the festival with her husband and two children. "We love the food and culture, especially the gyros... We always try to at least come one day."

While the temperatures in Stockton have been in triple digits this week, the weekend is expected to be in low 90s, which the organizers expect to bring in more attendees.

"Since it is a 100 and something degrees today [on Friday], of course, it is going to be struggle," Chiarchianis said, speaking about how many attendees he expects at the festival this year. "But on Saturday and Sunday, it is supposed to be down around 90, so I think we are going to have a big weekend."

The festival usually has anywhere between 7,000 to 10,000 attendees every year.
The festival will continue through Sunday at 920 W March Lane in Stockton, from noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday.

Harika Maddala is a photojournalist based in Stockton covering San Joaquin County for Bay City News Foundation and its nonprofit news site Local News Matters. They are a Report for America corps member and a CatchLight Local Fellow.

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