Koitaxte ti leei i Amerikaniki efimerida gia ti FILANTRWPIKI SYNAYLIA tis Annas.
Star drops in for visit By Jim Butts Daily Herald Staff Writer Posted Wednesday, March 09, 2005
It was Friday afternoon and Frank Skoupas, 71, was ready for karaoke night at the Greek American Rehabilitation and Nursing Centre in Wheeling. But he, and more than 100 other residents and staff, were in for a surprise.
Instead of singing their favorite hits, they got to hear them up close and personal from platinum selling European superstar Anna Vissi, dubbed by some critics as the "Greek Madonna."
Skoupas, who had become a fan of Vissi's after hearing her on past trips to Athens, handed a flower to the famous singer at the event and received a kiss in return.
"She was a good person," said Skoupas.
Vissi was joined by local singers Jimmy Damon and Robin Simone as well as former CBS reporter John Davis as special guests at the center Friday. The four sang, danced to Greek tunes, toured the facility and mingled with residents.
It was a preview to a banquet fund-raiser Saturday in which Vissi and the others performed free. More than 900 attended the dinner, dance and auction and helped raise more than $200,000 for the center. The event had been sold out for three weeks.
"Once people found out Anna was appearing the phones were going crazy here," said Perrie Veremis Hayes, director of community relations at the center. The center was able to book Vissi after the president of the center's board of directors met Vissi at another charity function in New York.
A native of Cyprus who moved to Greece as a child, Vissi has become one of Greece's biggest stars, using her powerful voice to perform everything from dance hits to rock-opera ballads.
Vissi seemed just as comfortable on the floor of the nursing center as she did on any stage as she circled the room hugging and talking with her audience, center staff and residents said.
"I couldn't get over her kindness," said Maria Eugenis, a volunteer at the center and a fan of Vissi. "I thought it was so unusual for her to take the time and hold people's hands and give them a hug as if they were her parents." One of her hit songs that she sang Friday is titled "Eleni," named and dedicated to a young fan of Vissi's who died of leukemia.
Residents at the Greek American Rehabilitation and Nursing Centre were so excited to see Vissi that many of the men dressed in suits and ties when they were told she was coming.
The staff said the event was a huge success due in great part to the Vissi and the other guests' loving spirit.
"I've never seen a celebrity be so nice to people," said Eugenis. "People can't be bothered these days but she was really an exceptional person."
