Yiasou Yarraville from Heartache to Heroes is the result of a 12-month collaboration and engagement plan within a large Greek community of the diaspora towards compiling an anthology of twenty unique stories from residents who have lived or worked in the Footscray area—focusing on Yarraville—a suburb with a strong Greek presence. Over 200 images tell the story of a distinct locality and experience in 283 pages.
These previously untold and unpublished histories span over a seventy-year period, beginning in the 1950s and reaching into the present day. Read about the skills and qualifications of these new arrivals, the industries to which they contributed their labour and how they shaped their environment to create a ‘Greek hub’ in Melbourne’s inner west. Contributors reflect on the lives they have made here and why they threw out their ‘five-year plan’ to remain in this culturally rich municipality.
Read the first-hand stories of internationally acclaimed film director Ana Kokkinos, cinephile Peter Yiannoudes and the Sun Theatre, Andrew’s Butchers and their award-winning hams, international heavy weight wrestling champion Alex Iakovidis and his kafenio, Sergeant Calliope Kwas—Victoria Police’s first Greek woman police officer, entrepreneurial Rosie Didolis and her diverse business ventures.
Discover the poetry of George Athanasiou, the mantinadas of Anna Vourvahakis and the music of Thomas Papadopoulos.
Recall the flavours of the beloved Malamas Cake Shop and revel in the successes of the Doxa (now Glory) soccer team, one of the first in Melbourne’s west as you learn more about the Greek Australians and their families who found their place as the schoolteachers, librarians, restauranteurs, sportspeople, and shopkeepers of Yarraville.
The stories focus on how these people adjusted and adapted their environment to create a new home while making a significant contribution to the local economy and enriching our broader cultural heritage.
Now Available
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Yiasou Yarraville from Heartache to Heroes 