July 5, 2017
 
Reverend Clergy and Faithful of the Holy and God-Protected Metropolis of Atlanta
 
My Dearly Beloved in the Lord,
 
I greet you with love in the Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
 
Yesterday, all of us had the good fortune to celebrate another 4 ^th of July in this beautiful country we call home. While the holiday itself has ended, I am sure that none of us can take for granted the displays of patriotism that we were privileged to witness.
 
In this spirit of holding this national pride close to our hearts all throughout the year, I wish to follow up on the email sent by our Chancellor, V. Rev. Fr. George Tsahakis, concerning the Metropolis-wide initiative to honor all our veterans. Using the  attached flyer, please submit the names of veterans you would wish to see both honored and memorialized during anticipated annual Memorial and Veterans Day celebrations at our Veterans Memorial at the Diakonia Retreat Center.  Once your names are collected, email the scanned form to Lekita Essa at lekitaessa@yahoo.com, or mail them to her at P.O. Box 6707, Raleigh, NC  27628. We ask they be submitted no later than Friday, July 14th. 

If you would prefer to fill out the form online or submit names individually, please click  here to fill out an online form.

While responses have thus far included a heartening 34 total parishes, I would like to echo Fr. George’s words, and add to them, encouraging all of us to put the patriotic feelings every American citizen is inclined to feel on Independence Day, into action throughout the year.
 
I know that Ms. Lekita and Fr. George appreciate your enthusiastic cooperation, and I certainly pray that I will see all our veterans, both living and those asleep in the Lord, honored for their many courageous sacrifices in defense of freedom and democracy. I remain,
 
Paternally yours with love in the Lord, 

+ A L E X I O S
Metropolitan of Atlanta