The American Woman's Organization of Greece (AWOG) Hosts first annual Baseball game between The Greek Baseball All Stars and The American Embassy "Bald Eagles"
	On a beautiful and sunny Saturday afternoon, on September 30th, 2006, two teams were brought together to play a game of baseball  in front of a sold out crowd of enthusiastic fans at the Olympic Baseball stadium at Elliniko.  The Greek Baseball All Stars were a team that was put together by Tom Mazarakis and was comprised of 25 young men who participate in the Greek Baseball league.  Tom Managed the team and Tasos Nakas coached the team.  The American Embassy "Bald Eagles" were put together by Chad Thornberry and was comprised of American Embassy personnel.  The game was AWOG's idea as a way of generating funds that would be contributed to the worthy cause of KIVOTO.  KIVOTO, or "The Arch", is a charitable organization operated by a young Greek Orthodox priest and his wife who have taken on the task of providing underpriveleged children with food, education, clothing, shelter, and any other forms of help they need.  AWOG hopes to help raise enough money so that a facility can be built that will help house the KIVOTO's operations so that it can help more children.  AWOG's President, Kimberly Coskina, initially contacted Tom and Chad to find out if they could participate and, of course, both men immediately replied with a resounding YES!  Not only would they help to generate revenues for a worthy cause, they would also get the opportunity to play the wonderful game of baseball at the Athens 2004 Olympic Stadium.  Several large corporations also heeded the call and provided sponsorships that furthered the fund raising efforts of the event.  AWOG volunteers served hotdogs, soft drinks, beer, and "Cracker Jacks".  It was a truly great day for all involved. The Greek Baseball All Stars who took part were: 1.  Vasilis Petkidis                     Spartakos 2.  Panos Cheilakis                    Spartakos 3.  Stathis Taliatoudas                Spartakos 4.  Nick Mazarakis                     Spartakos 5.  Jim Hondropoulos                 Spartakos 6.  Nassos Markou                     Spartakos 7.  Costas Arvanitis                   Spartakos 8.  Vasilis Arvanitis                   Spartakos 9.  Harry Assimakopoulos          Spartakos 10. Dimitris Tapsas                    Spartakos 11. Ernesto Ybarra, Jr.              Spartakos 12. Robert McNamara                Milonas 13. Stathis Georgatsos               Milonas 14. James Komninakis              Milonas 15. John Apostolopoulos            Milonas 16. Marino Sotiropoulos            Pelopas 17. Andreas Gousetis                Pelopas 18. Nate Tufte                           Titans 19. Manos Mazarakis                Titans 20. Efthimios Sianos                 Titans 21. Paschalis Souskas               Titans 22. Paschalis Gizas                   Titans 23. Steve Iosif                          Titans 24. Leontis Sorotos                   Titans 25. Thanos Stefos                     Thiseas The stands were filled with spectators, most of whom were children.  Amongst the children were almost all the children that Kivoto works so hard to help and protect.  Due to the fact that the majority of these children were new to baseball, it was decided that a game of slow pitch softball would be easier for the kids to watch and learn from.  Baseball is a great game, but is harder to understand for beginners.  Stealing and sliding were not allowed and the slow pitching along with the "limited flight" softballs allowed the new fans to watch an exciting game.  After 9 innings the American Embassy Bald Eagles won the game by a score of 9 - 5, but more importantly, the children won after enjoying a wonderful afternoon filled with excitement, ball-park hotdogs, and exposure to a game that can be enjoyed by everyone.  After the game, all the children were invited to come down to the field and try their hands at throwing, catching, and hitting the ball.  They probably had more fun trying to play the game themselves than by just watching it played. All in all, it was a great day for everyone and the Spartakos family wish to thank everyone who participated in this wonderful event.