Greek Orthodox church to break ground in Camarillo, California

 Construction of new facility to begin in October

WORSHIP—An artist’s drawing of the proposed new campus for St. Demetrios Greek Othodox Christian Church in Camarillo. Acorn file photo

St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Christian Church will build a new facility at the corner of Woodcreek and Santa Rosa roads in Camarillo.

His Eminence Metropolitan Gerasimos of San Francisco will lead the community in a groundbreaking ceremony scheduled for 4 p.m. Sat., Sept. 29.

Site construction will begin in mid-October. The community of St. Demetrios has hired HMH Contractors to run the project.

The 35- year- old parish is located at the Camarillo Airport near Pleasant Valley Road and is home to approximately 200 families in Ventura County.

The Rev. Gary Kyriacou was assigned to St. Demetrios on Aug. 1, 2004. He and the community have been working together through capital campaign projects, festivals, golf tournaments and other fundraisers to build a new facility ever since.

In April 2004, the parish purchased a parcel of land in the Mission Oaks area of Camarillo. Fundraising efforts to pay for the land began immediately. The land debt was retired in March 2007. Heathcote and Associates architecture firm then began to design the campus of the Byzantine-style complex.

St. Demetrios is under the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Fransisco, which extends over seven states. There are 67 parishes under the spiritual guidance of Metropolitan Gerasimos.

Services at St. Demetrios are conducted in English and sprinkled with Greek. The church’s services begin at 9 a.m. Sundays. Visitors are welcome.

For more information, call (805) 482-1273 or go online to

www.saintdem.org.