Houston-Athens Marathon Exchange 2012

On January 12, 2012 the Consulate of Greece in Houston along with the Houston-Athens Marathon Exchange and the Hellenic Cultural Center of the Southwest hosted the 25th annual Pastichio dinner at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Houston, TX. This annual event is the only one of its kind in the United States and is held the Thursday before the Chevron Houston Marathon. The Houston-Athens Marathon Exchange gives two randomly selected individuals, one male and one female, that have completed the Houston Marathon in under 4 hours a once in a lifetime opportunity to participate in the Athens Classic Marathon all expenses paid. This program also allows two runners from Greece the opportunity to participate in the Houston Marathon all expenses paid. All this is made possible from the annual pastichio dinner which is used to help offset the costs of sending these runners to either Athens or Houston. Every year hundreds of people come together for this highly anticipated event to meet the runners from Houston and Greece, socialize with friends and most of all, to enjoy delicious homemade pastichio. Many of the previous years’ recipients attend this event as well as the organizers of the Houston Marathon, the Consul of Greece in Houston and various donors and sponsors. This is a family oriented event. The pastichio dinner has gotten the attention of many Greeks nationwide. This year Ms. Joanna Xipa from NEO Magazine flew to Houston to report on this one of a kind event. She conducted many interviews with various organizers, the athletes and also took pictures to document the event.

Houston-Athens Marathon Exchange Program (Pastichio Dinner)