On October 15, 2024, a groundbreaking website debuted in the vast and multidimensional world of the internet. It quickly took on the characteristics of a “living” museum, narrating aspects of modern Greek and Australian history with a central focus on the story of Hellenism on the fifth continent.
The website, Our People, Their Stories (www.opts.org.au), is a project of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia. It preserves and highlights invaluable records from the period when the Greek presence in Australia flourished. These records are presented through the narratives and testimonies of the people who lived through that era.
The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew noted that “this endeavor is not merely the recording and systematic presentation of past events in writing. Rather, it is a multimedia platform where people’s personal stories are documented so that both the stories and the individuals themselves remain in the collective memory.” His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew blessed and inaugurated the project during his apostolic visit to Australia last October, and he outlined its unique identity with these words:
Since the inauguration of the Patriarchal “living” museum, Our People, Their Stories, it has presented 100 personal stories of first- and second-generation immigrants through videos and podcasts. These stories have brought to light an invaluable treasure of memories that were at risk of being lost. These stories have moved and stirred audiences, taught and inspired a new generation, and touched the hearts of millions of people in Australia, Greece, and around the world.
On Saturday, October 4, 2025, the official celebration of the first anniversary of the “living” museum took place at the National Maritime Museum of Australia in Sydney. Archbishop Makarios of Australia, Greece’s Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni, other distinguished guests, and some of the protagonists of Our People, Their Stories attended the celebration. These individuals have already shared their personal narratives, adding new pieces to the mosaic of the collective memory of Hellenism in Australia.
The creators of Our People, Their Stories continue the work of zealously and dedicatedly documenting the migratory history of the Greek diaspora on the fifth continent. The “living” museum is continuously enriched with new stories, both audiovisual and written, offering its audience more powerful and moving experiences.
