Opa in the Old Pueblo: A Downtown Revival of Tucson’s Greek Festival

Life Along The Streetcar said:

Tucson is no stranger to festivals, but something unforgettable is coming this year, the Greek Festival is back, and downtown is about to get a whole lot more vibrant. After a five-year hiatus, the beloved Tucson Greek Festival returns with new energy, new location, and the same spirit of kefi (joy, life, celebration). In this episode, host Tom Heath sits down with Peter Anadranistakis, one of the festival’s lead organizers, to unravel how a cherished tradition is being reimagined for 2025, and why this year’s downtown staging could be the most magical one yet.

We tell the story here in full, so you’ll get all the highlights, context, and must-know details (even if you don’t listen all the way through). And of course, we’ll show you why you need to be there.

The Legacy of Tucson’s Greek Festival

For decades, the Tucson Greek Festival has been a staple of community life, hosted by St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church. Families, music lovers, foodies, and culture seekers have gathered to savor classic dishes, hear traditional music, and watch dancers bring Greece to life in the desert.

Through the years the festival became more than just one weekend—it became a living expression of Hellenic heritage in Tucson. But the world changed. After 2019, pandemic disruptions, scheduling challenges, and a church campus move delayed the festival’s return.

Many wondered whether “the Greek Festival” would ever again grace Tucson’s calendar.

A Bold Move Downtown

This year, the organizers are doing something bold: the festival is relocating to Downtown Tucson—to the mural lot across from 43 E. Congress Street, just steps away from the pulse of the city.

It’s no small shift: for the first time, the Greek Festival will leave behind its traditional church grounds and meet Tucson in the heart of its rhythm. That move signals not just resurgence, but renewed ambition—a festival tuned for 2025 and beyond.

Food, Flavor & Greek Favorites

One hallmark of the festival has always been its food—and 2025 won’t disappoint. Expect traditional Greek dishes like gyros, lamb, spanakopita, tiropita, Greek salads, and plenty of vegetarian and vegan options. Dessert lovers will rejoice: baklava, melomakarona, almond cookies, and more sweet treasures will be available. Meanwhile, authentic Greek coffee, specialty drinks, and Greek spirits will round out the culinary experience.

Music, Dance & Immersive Culture

This won’t feel like a church parking lot fundraiser. Thanks to a partnership with DUSK Music Festival and Rio Nuevo, the downtown edition will tap into sophisticated lighting, staging, and production to present a high-energy cultural showcase.

Featured performance? Evangelia—a Greek-American singer with a rising global profile—will take the stage, blending Greek, English, and Spanish in her set. And nods to tradition are baked in: there will be Greek dance troupes, folk performances, and a special interactive installation dubbed “YiaYia’s House”—a playful and heartwarming homage to the homes of Greek grandmothers, complete with hospitality, sweet treats, and storytelling.

Activities, Vendors & Community Spirits

The festival is an immersive, communal festival experience. Local vendors will sell Greek-inspired crafts, artisanal goods, jewelry (including iconic motifs like the evil eye), and art.

There will be family-friendly elements, dancing lessons, cultural demonstrations, and space for guests to linger, explore, and connect. Also important: the event is volunteer-powered and supports local and national charities, making each bite and dance step part of a larger mission of giving back.

Bigger Vision

Though this edition is a one-day event (November 14, 2025) in downtown Tucson from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., organizers see it as the first act in a much grander plan. Peter Anadranistakis envisions turning Tucson into a center of Hellenism in North America, with multi-day expansions, cultural corridors, art & fashion showcases, and even “Greektown”-style neighborhoods in time.

This festival revival is both a return and a reimagining: We’re not simply celebrating what was, this is a festival with reach, scale, and modern purpose.

Why You Should Be There

Experience tradition with a twist: Taste beloved Greek flavors, hear soulful music, and dive into cultural rituals, all in a fresh, downtown setting.

Be part of Tucson’s cultural revival: Your attendance supports downtown activation, local artisans, and organizations investing in community.

Make memories that matter: Whether you come for the baklava, dance under the lights, or simply share a gyro with friends, you’ll walk away feeling part of something joyful and meaningful.

Elevate your social game: This is the kind of festival people talk about, full of Instagram moments, great food, new discoveries, and stories to tell.

Conclusion & Calls to Action

The Greek Festival’s return is a renewal of identity, culture, and community connection in downtown Tucson. Opa in the Old Pueblo: A Downtown Revival of Tucson’s Greek Festival is your invitation to be part of that story.

• 🎟️ Get your tickets now — advance sales help us plan and produce the event at full energy.
• 📣 Share the news — post the title and tagline on your social feeds, tag friends, build the excitement.
• 🤝 Volunteer or partner — there are still ways to get involved behind the scenes.
• 🎧 Listen to the episode — hear the full conversation, insights, and stories you won’t get anywhere else.
• 🔔 And of course—subscribe to Life Along the Streetcar so you don’t miss future stories from Downtown Tucson.

Let’s make November 14 a night when Tucson breaks bread, dances under the stars, and says: Opa!

Tom Heath
Welcome to Life Along the Street Car podcast, where we dive deeper in the hidden gems, inspiring people and creative culture shaping downtown to son and beyond. I’m your host, Tom Heath. This episode originally aired as a radio broadcast on Downtown Radio 99.1 FM in Tucson, but here you’re going to get the full conversation, maybe a few extras and just a little bit of something for our podcast listeners.

Tom Heath
So settle in and enjoy the conversation. And today we are joined by Peter and Adrienne, a stockists which I’ve practiced that name multiple times now, and I probably should have a blooper reel of that. And I appreciate your patience. We’re going to chat about the upcoming Tucson Greek Festival. It’s a vibrant celebration of heritage and community. It’s going to be a day filled with authentic flavors, lively entertainment, the spirit of Greece, and it’s going to be brought to you right here in downtown Tucson for the first time.

Tom Heath
So again, welcome to the show. Thank you.

Tom Heath
Good morning. It’s another beautiful Sunday in the Old Pueblo. And you’re listening to Katie and Tucson. Thank you for spending part of your brunch hour with us on your downtown Tucson community. Sponsored, all volunteer powered rock and roll radio station this week. It’s up in the old Pueblo after a five year break. The Tucson Greek Festival is back and it’s got a new downtown vibe.

Tom Heath
So this week I’m joined by Peter and Adriana. Stock is one of the driving forces behind the festival’s revival. We’ll talk about the roots of this beloved tradition and why it moved from Fort Lowell to Congress, and what’s in store for the 2025 celebration? Today is October 12th, 2025. My name is Tom Heath and this is life along the streetcar.

Tom Heath
Every Sunday we shine a light on social, cultural and economic forces shaping Tucson’s urban core from a mountain to the University of Arizona and all stops in between. You get the inside track right here on 99.1 FM, streaming on downtown radio.org, or through the Downtown Radio Tucson app on your phone. And if you want to connect with us directly on the show, follow us on Life Along the Streetcar at Facebook and Instagram.

Tom Heath
Those are our handles over there. You can also head to life along the Streetcar Dawg, where most of our episodes are posted there with audio and yes, video. Like today’s episode, you’ll also find information about past shows, information on our book, and there’s just an easy way to reach out. Well, I took the day off last Sunday. It was crazy.

Tom Heath
We had the grand opening of the gallery. And I just could not get to, the show, so I apologize, but I thanks, Ben for stepping up, and, helping out there. He, it just so you know, a DJ bank, was running the downtown radio. So ten year anniversary celebration over, for fourth there with the American company, we had all, band, a bunch bands playing that were deejays from downtown Radio.

Tom Heath
I, didn’t get a chance to see all of them. I snuck in at the very end, man. And the owner’s making a return after, like, 20 years. Just fabulous stuff. And. And there was DJ Bank running the whole thing. And then swinging back into, talk on the radio. And I think he even did a little segment there with, with Satan at the, at the top of the hour with his new show.

Tom Heath
So deejay Bank, he is everywhere. Well, we we, we’re excited about downtown. You know, always things he’s happy are happening. And now, the Greek festival is making its way into the old pueblo. So, if you remember the Greek festival, it’s been been held up on in Fort Lowell for for a couple of decades. And, the church, Saint Dimitrios church, relocated.

Tom Heath
There was enough room, so they had to they kind of put everything on hold. It coincided with, with, Covid. We’ll get the whole story here in a moment, but, lo and behold, you know, we have this gentleman that comes to Tucson, his name is Peter Antigen, a stack us. I think I’m saying that pretty darn close.

Tom Heath
And, he has not been a part of this festival, but he has been a part of this culture for, for, for some time. And he’s been a driving force in getting it back up and running. And, we’re going to talk to him about what, you know, kind of this transformation, what to expect, and all of those good stuff.

Tom Heath
So this is an interview recorded with him, just, about a little over a week ago, was supposed to air last Sunday. So I apologize for that. But we got it up to running this week. And, I learned about the Greek Fest, which is happening here in mid November, about a month away. Welcome. And I’m excited about our topic today because this is the Tucson Greek Festival, which has been a mainstay every fall.

Tom Heath
We’ve been looking forward to this and we haven’t seen it for a while, but it’s it’s coming back.

Peter Anadranistakis
It’s coming back and it’s coming back, hopefully bigger and better and, better location than ever. So it’s a new Greek fest, and it’s downtown Tucson right across from the Monica and the mural lot. It’s taking place the night before dusk. So dusk is on November 15th and 16th. We’re on November 14th, and the good folks at dusk and re on the way over really helped us make this happen.

Peter Anadranistakis
So we’re very thankful.

Tom Heath
But oh, and right away over when we’ve talked with them their goal is economic development, which is part you know, what you’re doing and driving people downtown. But it’s also cultural development. And that’s the thing that, this festival’s been known for for four years. When I first moved to Tucson, in 1993, I think this may have been the first major event that I went to was the Greek Festival, and it was up on a Saint Dimitrios church.

Peter Anadranistakis
And for little. Yeah.

Tom Heath
And and I just remember, like, oh my goodness, there are a lot of people like this was such. Yeah. I thought, we’re going to this little church bazaar. And I’m like, oh no, there’s like there’s traffic patterns being affected by this. This festival has been a huge part of Tucson.

Peter Anadranistakis
Yeah, it’s a huge part of Tucson in so many ways. I, I, I moved to Tucson permanently three and a half years ago. Part of the reason was Real Nuevo. One of the first things I did was seek out the Greek Orthodox Church. That’s here when I, when I was here permanently. I have so many people tell me stories about how they were affected by father Reverend Anthony Moscow Mouse, who was someone you would have met.

Peter Anadranistakis
There’s memory eternal now. He’s no longer with us here on earth, but he. He just reached out to people like nobody else could. So he not only helped organize the entire festival and put it all on and get all the sponsors, but people then became connected to the church. People came connected to the Greek community. People made connections amongst themselves.

Peter Anadranistakis
People built new friendships. It was something really incredible. So it really goes beyond, culture, which sharing culture is such a beautiful thing no matter what culture. And as you said, Real Nuevo does a great job of promoting that. But it’s really just sharing the love of life. Greeks just love life. They just love life and they love to have a good time.

Peter Anadranistakis
They love to host friends and they love to host people in their home. And so hopefully when people come to the new downtown Greek Fest, it’s going to be like you’re coming into a Greek person’s home.

Tom Heath
Well, a couple things in there then. So you’ve been here three and a half years, the festival. So did you attend the Tucson Greek Festival prior to coming here, or is this so you are you familiar with it?

Peter Anadranistakis
So, being Greek and being involved, as a Greek youth, it doesn’t matter what community you are. Where in North America, chances are your community is put on the Greek festival of. Okay, so very familiar with putting on Greek festivals, the dancing, the fugue, the food, the culture, all of that. But I have never had attended the Greek festival here in Tucson.

Peter Anadranistakis
About two years ago, we brought in the Greek singer from Greece called Thanos Petroleos. Okay. And the wonderful people at Moca allowed us to use their outdoor area. We closed off the street and we had this great festive big gala dancing event. And we knew based on the success of that, that there was still a hunger and a thirst for the Greek culture here in Tucson.

Peter Anadranistakis
And that was the Genesis. And Renovo helped sponsor that as well. But that was the genesis of us planning for the last two years to bring back the Greek Fest in a bigger way and hopefully in a more impactful way in downtown Tucson.

Tom Heath
And and I just learned this story just before we came on the air. I thought it had ended because of Covid, but it really ended because of some. The church moved. I didn’t realize that, but the church had to move in the new location, couldn’t support the festival that day. I understand that correctly.

Peter Anadranistakis
You you got both facts correct. So one.

Tom Heath
That’s good. That’s that’s a rarity. So it’s like a 5050. We’re doing well on this show.

Peter Anadranistakis
That’s great. Well, number one, the last festival took, the last Greek festival took place before Covid. So once Covid had things started to change, restaurants started to shut down, as you know, people who were once maybe going at a very active and going out no longer were going out. Lives changed as, as you can appreciate.

Peter Anadranistakis
And then a second thing took place is that the Greek church moved from Fort Lowell to closer to the Jewish community campus at 3939 North Vernon. And it’s a beautiful new church site with beautiful buildings overlooking the Catalina mountains. But the parking and the actual square footage and the acreage is significantly less, and it could not host that many people that you experience.

Peter Anadranistakis
It could not come close to hosting 5000 people in a day.

Tom Heath
I felt, and that’s not even a day that’s like in a few hours. I mean, it’s it’s more I guess it goes on all day. I usually get there in the evening when it’s, a little more festive.

Peter Anadranistakis
You’re like most everybody. We’re trying to open it a little early to get that trickle effect and try to get that lunch crowd coming from downtown Tucson and hopefully our, our good friends and all the wonderful people that have got great businesses here in downtown Tucson want to come, for lunch. But, like most people, they will likely come for an early dinner or a late supper.

Peter Anadranistakis
And to catch all of the dancing and all of the entertainment that is taking place throughout the day. But as the sun goes down, the livelihood goes up. So hopefully you and your entire team will come as our VIP guests to the festival this year as well.

Tom Heath
We will be excited just to celebrate. And this is. Has it ever been anywhere besides the The Saint Demetrios Church? Has it been any other locations?

Peter Anadranistakis
It’s a great question. To the best of my knowledge, no, it’s always been at that.

Tom Heath
Fort Lowell site. So this is a this is like a renaissance. It’s not just a revival. It’s a renaissance. It’s it’s coming back and it’s coming back differently. And I would imagine because you’re the, the co-chair of the, the festival this year. So you got a whole different perspective. You’ve seen festivals all over the country probably, but you’re bringing a unique perspective and you’re not I’m gonna say tied, but you’re not.

Tom Heath
You’re not bringing some. It’s not nothing stale. Everything’s brand new and fresh.

Peter Anadranistakis
Everything’s very fresh. It’s very modern, very new, but also very old school. So we’ll get into all the components of that. And yes, I’m the co-chair. There’s two additional co-chairs. One is Frank Heliopolis, the other is John Rawls. Okay. And John Rawls as you may or may not know, is one of the partners and does page reps.

Tom Heath
Yeah, yeah.

Peter Anadranistakis
And their generosity was overwhelming because they had a concept to allow us to use some of their infrastructure the night before. That’s their two day festival. And without them and without Renovo really kicking us off. And a lot of other sponsors that we have, we could not put this festival on downtown.

Tom Heath
And the infrastructure to create a space for that many people. And, and, and I don’t know, my, my guess is you might exceed previous numbers because of the location and because of this sort of pent up demand. But to have that all of those are just it’s worked out us as a connection to, the team at dusk sort of laying that foundation.

Tom Heath
How oh my gosh, how wonderful that.

Peter Anadranistakis
Well, it’s beyond wonderful because we’re going to bring a new production to Greek festivals that perhaps hasn’t been seen before. Different lights, different sound, different opportunities. And there’s going to be something new called yeah, yeah house. Yeah, yeah means grandmother in Greek. And so everybody wants to go to their yes house because Yaya loves the grandkids. Yeah, yeah.

Peter Anadranistakis
Feeds the grandkids. Yeah. Yeah. Always has extra special sweets and treats for the grandkids. But yeah, yeah. We also have these traditional old couches that have plastic on them. That with the lampshades that have the original plastic. You’re not really supposed to touch anything in there. Probably not supposed to eat anything inside of there. But we’re going to rebuild the traditional year house and serve some very special treats, and people are going to be able to honor their year as well.

Peter Anadranistakis
Whether you’re Greek, or any nationality, quite frankly, you’ll be able to honor your grandmother in in the yeah, I guess, house installation. That’s a new Greek fest. So we’re bringing some modernism to it as well.

Tom Heath
We are in the middle of our conversation with Peter and I during the stock is he is, a leading force in bringing the Greek festival back after a five year hiatus. And, also part of, the effort to bring it into downtown here on Congress Street and made it November. My name is Tom Heath. You are listening to life along the streetcar in Downtown radio 99.1 FM, and we’re streaming on Downtown radio.org.

Speaker 3
This podcast is sponsored by Tom Heath and the Heath team and Nova Home Loans. If you’ve enjoyed this podcast, continue listening or head over to left on the Street Khou.com for current events and information on what to do while visiting Tucson. Tom Heath and MLS number 182420 Nova and MLS number 3087 Vic number 0902429. Equal Housing Opportunity.

Tom Heath
All right. Well, if you’re just joining us here today, our guest, is talking about the Greek festival, its return after five years and its decision to come downtown and all the things that lined up for that, being joined in this conversation by a Peter and Andrew. Nostoc. Is he, is fairly new to Tucson as far as the Greek festival.

Tom Heath
He hasn’t attended previous festivals. But he has jumped in to, really kind of usher this forward. And I’m sure working with a great staff and, and, volunteers and dedicated people that are excited to bring it back. So we’re gonna finish up the second half of our interview here, recorded, a little over a week ago.

Tom Heath
Let’s kind of talk about what for if you haven’t been, which you haven’t been, but you probably can tell us what’s going to happen. I remember the music was amazing, the energy was amazing, so much that I didn’t really understand, but just felt a part of, And then the food. Oh, my goodness. There is like.

Tom Heath
Yeah, all that’ll be there.

Peter Anadranistakis
All that’ll be there. Let’s talk about those things.

Tom Heath
All right.

Peter Anadranistakis
You’re exactly right.

Tom Heath
It’s it’s three for three. James. It’s three for three. That are you, sir, are you.

Peter Anadranistakis
Grateful.

Tom Heath
I marked this on the calendar here.

Peter Anadranistakis
It is, it is exactly right. It’s the feeling, right? It’s the feeling. And, Greeks have a word for that feeling. But you you hear Greeks yell, Opa! Which is a Greek word that they yell that has a zest for life. But there’s also a Greek word that says, this place has cafe. KFI, it has cafe.

Peter Anadranistakis
And cafe is one word that basically describes everything you’re saying. It’s got energy, it’s got feeling, it’s got positive vibes, it’s got family, it’s got friends, it’s got this energy. And to me, all of that just completes itself with amazing food, like mouthwatering food that you just you can’t put down. I’ll give you a quick example. When I would take my daughters to Athens, Greece, and we would land and we would go and get something to eat, they were little girls when we first started going there, and they were very picky eaters.

Peter Anadranistakis
And the moment they put authentic Greek food in their mouth, like a hero’s a whole big, gyro sandwich. They would ask for another one. And so, you know, you can’t stop eating the food. It’s that good. And you can’t stop smiling the whole time. It’s not good. You may not understand what the Greek singer. We’re going to have a live Greek singer.

Peter Anadranistakis
That evening. And so much entertainment. But it’s the feeling. It’s the cafe.

Tom Heath
Can you tell us who the speaker the singer is, or is that. Is that. Absolutely?

Peter Anadranistakis
Absolutely. So, it’ll be her at least her second time in Tucson. Evangelia is her name okay? She’s a very, very well known artist, both in Greece and in America. She lives in Los Angeles with her bouzouki playing, boyfriend, Jay. She is extremely popular, not only on YouTube. She was a runner up in Eurovision. She’s got hit songs.

Peter Anadranistakis
And so she sings in English, Spanish and Greek. So that’s something that’s really cool. So what we’re starting to see is that the Greek culture and the Spanish culture has this kind of cross collaboration, which is really cool for Tucson.

Tom Heath
So the events coming up here, we’re going to this is going to air early October. So, we’re a little over a month away. By the time this, this gets out to the world. Are there costs involved as a, as a consumer, do you pay for tickets or like, tell us more about all that stuff? I yes.

Peter Anadranistakis
Absolutely. So, children six and under are free when accompanied by an adult. General admission tickets are $7. So we wanted to make them very inexpensive. All the proceeds are going towards charities, both community charities and the Greek community, and other local charities and VIP tickets. We have a limited amount of VIP tickets, which are $150.

Tom Heath
Okay, so if the money then is going to the charities that I’m assuming, then you’re looking at completely, generous support to make this that make this happen.

Peter Anadranistakis
Yeah. We we’re hoping through the generosity of our, of our sponsors. And we have, as I’ve mentioned, some of the sponsors, including Rio Nuevo, we have a whole list of sponsors that that, you can either air or or publish or that we have published on our socials and will be at our, our event. We’re hoping that all of the proceeds that we make that evening, through the selling of food and the merchandise and, and, some of the sweets at the ice house will go towards pretty much all local charities.

Peter Anadranistakis
Some of them are nationally recognized charities, but pretty much all local charities.

Tom Heath
And then people get tickets through your website or.

Peter Anadranistakis
Yes, so they get tickets through the website. And if people are familiar with Eventbrite, we have all of our tickets posted on Eventbrite.

Tom Heath
Okay. And then from from the sort of the procedural standpoint, what about volunteers? Is are you looking for volunteers or are you completely filled.

Peter Anadranistakis
With we’d love to have more volunteers. We, as you mentioned before, we might exceed previous numbers, especially with the location. So we are looking for volunteers. Those that are interested in in supporting or getting to know the Greek community more or wanting to just do something local. They can get in touch with us through our website and submit a, communication.

Peter Anadranistakis
We do have a lot of volunteers kind of ready. We’ve also have, the Tucson Police Department on the ready. We have, security, available, but we’re going to need all different kinds of volunteers. So the more the merrier.

Tom Heath
Yeah, I can imagine. Just kind of the new layout. It’s. It’ll be nice, I think, because it’s so contained. Part of the the previous experience was you were sort of wandering around and, and going from spot to spot, so you might not have seen everything as it was maybe a little harder here. But then I can imagine the congestion that will be in there.

Tom Heath
So having volunteers to help guide and keep everyone, festive was the plan.

Peter Anadranistakis
Yeah. We want everybody. First of all, you got to make people feel welcome. You know? Welcome. And and you don’t. Just like if you’re a guest in my home, I don’t want to keep you waiting. So I want you to be able to kind of walk right in. So we’re hoping to minimize some of those lines and that waiting time.

Peter Anadranistakis
And then we want people to be there as a guide. Okay. Did you want to see the ISOs installation. Are you are you hungry right now. Did you want to look at the art installation? Did you want to get any more information on the charities that we’re we’re supporting? What what can we help guide you with as far as your experience is concerned?

Peter Anadranistakis
And I think a lot of people just want to experience the whole thing the sights, the smells, the tastes, all of that and the entertainment. And it’s it’s a beautiful venue in the mirror lot across from the Monica because it’s, it’s it’s very long. It’s deceptively wide, but it goes all the way back to Pennington. And we also get the privilege of using some of Pennington, which is typically closed off, for the Dusk Music Festival.

Tom Heath
And, and for those that, may not have been paying attention to previous episodes, we’ve done, Rock the spot, the graffiti artist. They will be in, October 9th and 10th, 11th, I think, to redo a lot of those murals. So it’ll be fresh. Amazing that first thing at dusk following you. It’s like you’re. You’re meant to be that.

Peter Anadranistakis
That’s amazing.

Tom Heath
Now, here’s the question. I, I’ve interviewed other people that organize festivals. There’s no question they absolutely hate because you’re like a month away from this big event that’s been hasn’t happened in years. And new location, all these logistics. And I’m gonna ask this question. Yep. What does the future look like? Are we or is this something that you’ve thought through like is this a one and done?

Tom Heath
Or is this the restart of a new tradition?

Peter Anadranistakis
Well, again, with all of our very generous sponsors and folks like yourself that take a genuine interest to what’s not only going on downtown but what’s going on, culturally and festival wise. The future is not only bright, we have a very large vision for the future. And, I can start with the punchline that we in Tucson, there’s a group of us that want to have Tucson as the center of Hellenism, of the Greek culture in North America and North America, for retirement, for living, for eating, for, potentially a Greek town coming to to Tucson.

Peter Anadranistakis
We have a huge vision, for Tucson and part of that huge vision and it can evolve over 20 years. It could evolve over 50 years, and it might over evolve over half a decade. We don’t know. But part of that huge vision is to bring the best of Greece to Tucson and to next year have a multi-day festival.

Peter Anadranistakis
And then and then in previous years have more of a gem show like environment. So imagine a two week event that brings all the best artists from Greece, the best people to make sunglasses, art, clothing, food, music. And so that’s our vision. But again, it started with a concert at Moca. We’re now bringing it to the mural lot before dusk.

Peter Anadranistakis
Our vision is to continue partnering with them or to have something once again downtown. But over multiple days, and then perhaps a week and then perhaps a couple weeks. But we’ve we’ve got big plans here. The Greek community has big plans here at this.

Tom Heath
Is this is this is news a lot of times a the answer I get is, we’re just going to get through this one and then we’ll think about the future. But really you’re talking 50 years down the road. So that is, fantastic. Well, Peter, we’re going to link to, we’ll put, put the website up so people can find you and get tickets, information, maybe some volunteer opportunities.

Tom Heath
Thank you. I know you’re involved in other projects. I want to chat with you about those down the road, but, I appreciate you taking the time to come in today and share, this this what I consider fabulous renewal of this, this great tradition here in Tucson.

Peter Anadranistakis
Thank you. And I just want to say, if stop, which is a Greek word meaning thank you. Thank you for your generous generosity, your kindness. And, we’re going to be spreading one other Greek word at the Greek fest called allotment, which is love of man and love of mankind, and doing good by others. And your show is doing that.

Peter Anadranistakis
So we just want to say thank you for having great for a lot more here. And thanks for extending that filter to Mathias and Kristoff. Thank you very much for having me and having us.

Tom Heath
Thank you. That was Peter. Anna. Jenna Stock is the, co-chair of this year’s Greek festival, coming back after five years. More information will be coming out on our website and, social media as well. My name is Tom Heath. You’re listening to lifelong The Streetcar, Downtown radio 99.1 FM streaming on downtown radio.org.

Speaker 3
Support for downtown radio is provided by the Tucson Gallery, located in downtown Tucson. Instead of the proper shops attended East County Street, the Tucson Gallery offers original work, reproductions, and merchandise from Tucson artists like Joe Pejic, Jessica Gonzalez, Ignacio Garcia, and many more. For information about other artists, including when they will be live at the Gallery, head to the Tucson gallery.com or find them on Instagram and Facebook as Tucson Gallery.

Tom Heath
All right. Well, episode three, so it’s 358, I think, in the book. So thanks for hanging out with us here on a Sunday morning. Coming up in just a few minutes, we have Ted Ski as he interviews writers and others from, the labor movement on his show Words and Work. And then at the top of the hour, we welcome back to Sundays.

Tom Heath
Satan hit show Sundays with Satan, which I can just tell you is described as a jumpstart for your soul. Your antidote to corporate religion as we are the antidote to the corporate radio. Nice to have him back on the air. If you’ve, some people are shocked by his name and his mannerisms, but he is really a genuinely good person that, explores very deeply, philosophy and and, theology and has very interesting and open conversations about those.

Tom Heath
So maybe stick around and, listen to Ted and and listen to, Satan. And then we’ll get back into some music this afternoon, you know, how about that? How about that? And speaking of music, what a way to kick off Sundays, right? Are you are you tuning in for Mr. Nature in the morning and then deejay bank the musical bomb with the art of easing, man, just a great way to kick off.

Tom Heath
Sunday. And then we, we’re just very super lucky to be following them. And, Yeah, I get some of the audience. It’s a little too, eased on the couch. They they practice the art of easing and they don’t really get up. So they listen to our show and we appreciate that. What’s going on here?

Tom Heath
So next week, we’ve got, Mike Graham Koski. He’s, the owner of IBT is on fourth, and they’re, working on and soon to open up Nathan’s Famous, another hot dog joint from back east. I gotta open up here in Tucson and, found out there’s a little twist, little surprise in the Nathan’s Famous. Area there.

Tom Heath
So that’s a tune in next Sunday. Forget all those details. And, as a reminder, if there’s something you want us to cover or if you’re involved with something, if you have a passion, you know, you’re listening to the show. We are, like, hyper, hyper local for like, three miles a mountain to, University of Arizona. So if you know of someone that is doing great things in our community or that has a fantastic social media presence or whatever, please just reach out, let us know we’re getting more and more shows.

Tom Heath
Today’s was a suggestion from, from from a listener. We’ve got, coming up in a, in a couple of weeks. We got multiple shows that have been presented by people like, oh, you should talk to this person. Love that. You can always reach us. Contact at life along the street car.org. That’s our direct email address.

Tom Heath
And it’s funny, no one ever uses that. I’m not sure why I keep saying that, but I’ve read it. And if you are and when I responding, I apologize because it’s not getting to us. But most people we Instagram, Facebook, you can find us there. And then on our website, lifeline streetcar.org, there’s a contact us button there if you are so inclined.

Tom Heath
But James Portis is our executive producer. Amanda Martos is our associate producer, and I am Tom Heath, your host. Each week our opening music is from Ryan Hood. And today we’re going to close with a little music from, 1974, around the time the Greek festival started its monos y sauce with otro anos. Have a great week and tune in every Sunday for more life along the street.

Tom Heath
Car. Until next time, stay curious. Tucson, o.