The 36th Annual Greek Festival at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Salt Lake City, Utah, runs September 8-11 this year (2011)
History of the Greek Festival in Salt Lake City:
From 1935 through the mid 1960's, the Mothers Organization sponsored an annual one day Bazaar. It was first held in the basement of the church & later in the Memorial Cultural Center.
In 1965, the Mothers Organization became the Holy Trinity Philoptochos Society and they continued the one day Bazaar until 1975 when the Philopthochos and the Parish Council decided to do a joint effort and expand the event for two days. In 1976, an additional day was added to the Festival expanding the event to three days.
From 1977 to 1979, in an effort to accommodate the increasing number of visitors attending the Festival, the community decided to add the Cultural Center which provided seating for 400 people and also added a larger kitchen for food preparation.
As the Greek Festival continued to grow from 1978 through 1988, additional property was secured to provide additional space for the festival visitors.
In 1992-1993, the Parish Council approved the construction of a warehouse to help prepare for the festival. In addition, during this period the courtyard between the Cultural Center and Holy Trinity Cathedral was renovated with a fountain and benches and was made available for festival visitors to enjoy.
In 1992, the Hellenic Cultural Association opened the Hellenic Museum in the basement of the Holy Trinity Cathedral. The museum became the first Ethnic Greek Museum in the United States and attracts many visitors throughout the year and especially during the Festival.
What Is The Greek Festival Like Today?
The Salt Lake City Greek Festival has more and more visitors every year. The Festival has had as many as 50,000 visitors during the event.
During the Salt Lake City Greek Festival in 2006 visitors were able to tour the renovated Holy Trinity Cathedral and Hellenic Museum.
In 2007, the Festival added another day and opened up Thursday evening providing four days for the Festival visitors to visit the Holy Trinity Cathedral, the museum and enjoy the sights, sounds and aromas of Greece.
The Greek Orthodox Church of Greater Salt Lake sets aside funds every year from the Festival to support many charities in our community.
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