St Stefanos Greek Orthodox Church - St Petersburg Florida

St Stefanos 2009 Greek Festival

The 2009 St. Stefanos Super Greek Festival will be held on Friday, February 6th through Sunday, February 8th 2009. There will be Greek Food, Greek Dancing, Church Tours, Greek Music, Greek Cooking Demos, Greek Marketplace, Kids Fun Area and much more. You can also enter to win a 2009 Honda Civic Hybrid from Crown Honda and St. Stefanos. Car drawing tickets are available through St. Stefanos call 727-345-8235. Click here to purchase tickets online. Go to supergreekfest.com to find out more.

Parish History

Hours

The Church Office is open Monday - Friday, 9:30AM-3:30PM.

The Church Office closes for all liturgical services, including Orthros and Divine Liturgy on a Feastday, Baptisms, Funerals, and any other special services that may occur during normal office hours; the Office will reopen following the conclusion of the service.

St. Stefanos Community

Parish History

In late 1961, approximately 30 families came together to found the parish of Saint Stefanos. Many of the families had been attending church at St. John the Baptist Church in Tampa or St. Nicholas Cathedral in Tarpon Springs, so St. Stefanos became a community centered in southern Pinellas County. In our parish's early days, services were held at St. Andrew's Russian Orthodox Church in St. Petersburg. The building and dedication of the church was completed in 1968.

Our church was consecrated on April 17, 1988 (Sunday after Pascha that year). His Grace Bishop Isaiah of Aspendos, then Chancellor of the Archdiocese (now Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver), presided over the service with Rev. Fr. Andrew Maginas, our pastor at the time. The following is an excerpt from Fr. Andrew's message, as printed in the commemorative album from the consecration:

Our Consecration Day heralded a new chapter in the life of our Church. On this day the relics of the martyrs were placed in our Holy Altar by His Grace Bishop Isaiah and we all came forward as witnesses of and participants in this holy event. His Grace led the procession three times around the Church with the relics and we all placed oil in the vigil lamp which burns on the Holy Altar. These acts not only represented our commitment to Christ and His Church but were our personal acts of renewal.

Our Holy Altar contains the relics of Saint Haralambos the Priest-Martyr, commemorated February 10; Saint Anysia the Martyr, commemorated December 30; and the Holy Fathers at Raitho in Sinai, commemorated January 14.

In February 2001, St. Stefanos celebrated the dedication of a new Educational Building, which houses the church office and the priest's office, a small library, and several classrooms for Sunday School, Greek School, and various meetings and events during the week.

Currently, St. Stefanos is one of the smaller parishes of the Tampa Bay Area, but we are steadily growing. Our demographics are widely diverse, including many young families with children, as well as many retirees and part-time residents. We are constantly adding new programs, expanding our ministries, and working to progress in our mission.