about
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When you spend time in Greece, you immediately notice two things:
First, the place. The landscapes of the Greek Aegean have always inspired awe. The impossibly blue water, the crystal white sands, the dark green forests, the high defiant peaks — all are the stuff of legend. As you hike monk-made paths or row azure seas, these vistas fill your soul. For millennia, extraordinary people have walked here — and now you're one of them. Indeed, when you explore the real Greece, you become part of an epic landscape, a landscape of gods and goddesses, queens and kings, merchant princes, musicians, warriors, philosophers, poets, and more . . . .
Second, the people. Equally well-known is the warmth and kindness of the Greeks themselves. If you know where to look, from the largest city to the smallest village, the ancient Greek principle of guest friendship – philoxenia – is alive and well. When you arrive, it's like coming home. When you depart, you can't wait to return. And always, there's a sense that your heart has always lived here – and that your Greek friends have been waiting for you, all along . . . .
Which brings us to this project . . . .
In 1997, when I was starting my PhD at the University of Athens, I met Mr. Eugene Ladopoulos. Mr. Ladopoulos was the husband of my dissertation adviser, Professor Olga Palagia. One morning, Mr. Ladopoulos asked me to come to his warehouse. He needed help putting labels on a few hundred bottles of extra virgin olive oil, his very first batch of "liquid gold." (Mr. Ladopoulos’s family had owned land and olive trees near ancient Sparta for generations, but this was his first attempt bottling and selling his own olive oil in America.) We sat together, we joked, and we worked while he told me the tale of his land and its legacy.
Fast forward to 2004. I'd just moved back to the U.S. to start my job teaching art history at Concordia College in Moorhead, MN. Eugene and I were chatting about me importing a few cases of his extra virgin olive oil. The idea was small: Eugene wanted to work with someone he knew and trusted; I wanted to share his liquid gold with my friends and family. I had a suspicion that there were some folks over here who'd value his care for Creation, his care for tradition, and the extraordinary high quality of his olive oil.
“Let's try it.” He smiled. “Why not? Everyone loves good things.”
That little sentence now seems rather profound.
Everyone loves good things.
Indeed, that little idea now rests at the heart of this project.
This project is about sharing good things.
It's about bringing two amazing communities together.
It's about caring for Creation, our shared planet, it creatures, and its bounty.
It's about sharing stories, sharing traditions, and sharing the best that the world has to offer.
I invite you to weave yourself into this story, to celebrate something pure and true . . . to share some good things.
Come with us!
~ Peter
p.s.s. You can also take a look at our recently updated FAQ, right here.