100 Year Complete Book

St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church The First 100 Years 1926 - 2026St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church 1926 - 2026 10748 E. 116th Street Fisher, Indiana 46037 OfÞ ce: (317) 845-7755 https://www.stgindy.org September 27, 2026Letter From Metropolitan Saba Page 2Page 3Page 4Letter From David Najjar Parish Council President Page 5This book is dedicated to the parishioners of St. George Church past and present who have devoted their lives to preserving the Orthodox Faith worldwide and St. George Parish in Indianapolis and Fishers, Indiana. This book has been a labor of love by many parishioners of St. George for over 17 months. We are writing this book under the guidance of our beloved parish priest, Father Anthony Yazge, and with help from Deacon James Childs searching the archives for photos. Since 100 years have passed from when our forefathers founded the church, we hope our remembrances are accurate. We apologize for any omissions or inaccuracies that might be here. Please forgive us for whatever we might have missed. I hope you and your loved ones enjoy a look back at the fi rst 100 years of our beacon of light in the hope of the resurrection, our beloved St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church. Forward Page 6 The History Committee Deacon James, Amanda Wynat, Diana Najjar, Susie Baranyk, Brenda Mesalam, George Freije, David Najjar, Ken George, Eric Passmore, Father Anthony and Jeff Hughes Diana Najjar, Chairman George Freije Susie Baranyk Ken George Brenda Mesalam Jeff Hughes Beth Flaris Julia Beck Amanda Wynat, Editor Hala Bannourah, Photographer David Najjar Diane Koers And our designer: Eric PassmoreTable of Contents 100 Year History of St. George .......................................... The Knights of St. George ................................................. Servers of the Liturgy ........................................................ The Ladies .......................................................................... St. George Progressives .................................................... Teen SOYO ......................................................................... Church School .................................................................... Outreach: Missions and Charity ........................................ The Order of St. Ignatius of Antioch ................................. Bookstore .......................................................................... Middle Eastern Festival ..................................................... Board of Trustees to Parish Council ................................. Young Adult Ministry ........................................................ Young Men’s Group .......................................................... Go Ye Therefore ................................................................ Families of St. George: Past and Present......................... Page 8 Page 32 Page 36 Page 48 Page 56 Page 62 Page 72 Page 80 Page 90 Page 92 Page 94 Page 102 Page 106 Page 108 Page 110 Page 121 Page 7Page 8 St. George Celebrates 100 Years “And the disciples were fi rst called Christians in Antioch” Act 11:26 Eighteen centuries later, descendants of those earliest Christians left their homes and native lands in the Middle East, primarily from what is today Lebanon and Syria, escaping religious persecution and oppression of the crumbling Ottoman Empire, and made their way to the United States, many settling in Central Indiana. A fi rst order of business in their new land was to build a house of worship.1 One hundred years later, these bold Christian immigrants would surely be proud to see how St. George Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church has thrived and grown. How it all began: The Middle Eastern immigrants that settled in central Indiana in the late 1890’s and early 1900’s, began their journeys at the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea. They endured long and arduous voyages that often took 30 days or more.2 Immigration processing in stations, like Ellis Island, could add up to an additional month to their travels. Most of these people knew they would never again see the family or friends they left behind in their homelands. Some would not have an opportunity to ever return to the “old country.” These Christians came to America when a particularly strong culture of nativism drove all immigrants to assimilation. But assimilation was not easy for them. They spoke Arabic; they couldn't read or write the common language in this new land; they had little money. What many of the Christian immigrants did have, however, was an entrepreneurial spirit and a background in small-scale commerce. Peddlers were common in the early 1900’s. The trade required little capital. And a peddler could get by with speaking only a smattering of English.3 This entrepreneurial spirit and work ethic enabled the community of Middle Eastern immigrants to make their homes in and around the Indianapolis area. Nonetheless, they were unsettled. These Orthodox Christians had an unquenchable desire to practice their faith and traditions according to the teachings and practices of the Orthodox Church. The Orthodox Church is the Church founded by Jesus Christ and established by the Apostles in the fi rst century. By the Apostles’ travels and the missionary work of those that came after them, the Church spread from Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria and the Eastern Mediterranean to Rome, Constantinople, and eventually around the globe. For the fi rst thousand years, the Church was unifi ed. A series of disputes culminated in the East-West Schism that resulted in the separation of what are now known as the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church.4 The Christians immigrating from the Middle East, during the early part of the 20th century, were members of the Antiochian Orthodox Church, a branch of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Among the fi rst of the Arabic speaking, Orthodox Christians to have settled in the Indianapolis area, were Saada Kfouri, from Talia, Lebanon and her husband David Freije from Zahle, Lebanon. They and many of the Middle Eastern immigrants who followed, made their homes in the near east side of the city. They did their best to learn the English language; they worked in factories, opened grocery and dry goods stores, and became part of the community.5Page 9 They worked hard to embody and achieve the American Dream. Still, something was missing from their lives. While they were willing to leave behind friends, family, homes, and livelihoods in their old countries, and seek out freedom and fortune in their new lives, they were not willing to leave behind their faith or their church. Greek immigrants in Indianapolis had established an Orthodox church in 1910. Bulgarian immigrants established their church in 1915. But no Orthodox church existed in Central Indiana that would minister to members in Arabic. Moreover, at that time in history, there were essentially no churches, primarily ministering to Arabic speaking Orthodox Christians anywhere in the United States. Rather, Orthodox Christians immigrating from the Middle East would turn to Orthodox churches and clergy from Russia or Greece to keep practicing their faith. From time to time, visiting priests from Lebanon or Syria would travel the continent, staying in the homes of the faithful, to administer sacraments, perform baptisms and weddings, and conduct other services for all the Orthodox Christians in the community. Word traveled fast among the community, when an Arabic speaking priest would be in town. When a visiting priest arrived, the faithful would gather at one of their homes to renew their faith, break bread together and celebrate the milestones of life.6 The early 20th century saw a few Arabic Orthodox clergymen traveling to Indiana and throughout the Midwest. Under the Russian Orthodox church, Archmandrite Raphael Hawaweeny was summoned to go to America from Russia and minister to Arabic Christians. He served in a loft in Manhattan in 1895.6b He later was ordained a Bishop in New York and in 1902 he built the fi rst Arabic speaking Orthodox church: St. Nicholas church in Brooklyn. Father Nicola Yanney and Bishop Raphael Hawaweeny, who later was canonized St. Raphael of Brooklyn, were ordained by the Russian Orthodox Church specifi cally to minister to Arabic speaking Orthodox Christians.6a Metropolitan Germanos Shehadi, a bishop of the Antiochian Orthodox Church assigned to the region of Zahle, Lebanon, visited Indianapolis in 1916, holding services at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church on West Street near downtown Indianapolis.7 In the 1920’s, the Central Indiana community of Middle Eastern Christians began to search for land with the intention of building an Antiochian Orthodox church. Sol Saliba, who could not yet read English, copied down some information from a sign on a lot that he thought would be a good place to build a church. He excitedly brought it back to the others. But when Sol’s friends read the information, they all realized that what the sign really said was, “No dumping allowed.”8 While that particular location may not have proved fruitful to the eff orts of the community, the diligent immigrants would soon have land to build their own church home. On February 8, 1925, a newly organized group called the Knights of St. George was chartered with the Secretary of State in Indiana. The fi rst offi cers of this organization were Salim Freije, President; John Hider, Vice President; A.G. Corey, Secretary; and Abraham Joseph, Treasurer. This group named their organization in honor of St. George of Cappadocia, a third century soldier in the Roman military who was martyred for his devotion to Christianity and refusal to renounce his faith to Roman authorities.