By Rebecca Sodergren, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Theodora Polamalu will make a rare public appearance at a Jan. 25 dinner to raise funds for an Orthodox Christian charity.
A silent auction that night also will feature items signed by her Steeler husband, Troy, including adult and children’s jerseys, a throwback jersey and a hat.
The Polamalus, Orthodox Christians themselves, want to bring a branch of FOCUS North America, the primary Orthodox outreach organization, to Pittsburgh. The dinner will help to finance the Pittsburgh center’s planned opening on Orthodox Easter, April 24, 2011.
Thea Martin, president of the Ladies Philoptochos Society of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church in Mt. Lebanon, notes that the Pittsburgh center is in the process of securing a building. The center will focus on serving the working poor and will begin by feeding the hungry. As the center grows, it may move into other avenues of outreach, such as shelter or medical care, Mrs. Martin said.
Mrs. Martin hadn’t heard of FOCUS until she attended a church convention in Atlanta. She stopped by to visit the FOCUS booth, discovered that Mrs. Polamalu is on the national FOCUS board, and began hatching a plan to ask Mrs. Polamalu to speak to her 150-member women’s group.
What resulted was an event much larger than a speech for 150.
The Jan. 25 dinner at Holy Cross will include silent auction items from hotels, restaurants and other businesses in addition to the Polamalu memorabilia. The Greek dinner, at $50 per person, will include appetizers (feta, olives, hummus and pita), Kotopeta Avgholemono (chicken rolls), rice pilaf, green beans almondine and dessert (baklava and galatobouriko, a Greek custard in phyllo).
Mrs. Polamalu will speak on “Restoring Living Icons,” or reaching out to serve other people just as Orthodox Christians might reach out to the saints depicted in their icons.
“FOCUS is a ministry that Troy and I are excited to be involved with since its mission to serve the poor is one that resonates deep within our philanthropy,” Mrs. Polamalu said in a statement. “We chose to get involved with the ministry because as Orthodox Christians we are called to exemplify the commandments of Christ to care for our fellow man in need.”
FOCUS, which started just last year, has seven other centers scattered across the country in cities such as Minneapolis, Orlando and San Diego. The name stands alternately for “Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve” or for “Food, Occupation, Clothing, Understanding and Shelter.” The organization is Pan-Orthodox, meaning it is a cooperative effort of all Orthodox sects: Greek, Russian, Syrian and so on.
For the Jan. 25 dinner, RSVP by Jan. 10 to Vasso Paliouras at 412-563-3577 or JavaScript required to view address.
For more information on FOCUS North America and to order tickets online, visit focusna.org (scroll down the home page to see information on the Pittsburgh-Polamalu event).
