April 2026 News & Updates
Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen!
Happy spring, dear friends of Saint Basil! We hope that you all had a beautiful Pascha and that you are enjoying the treasures of spring. Here at Saint Basil Academy, birds are chirping, everything is blooming, and the campus is buzzing with life.
April was a momentous month, starting with Palm Sunday, Holy Week, and of course the glorious Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Members of the extended Saint Basil community helped decorate the kovouklion on Good Friday for a procession around the chapel, and on Pascha we joyfully spread the Light of Christ among all while fireworks lit up the sky!
The week after Bright Week, Father Nikolas Delaveris of the Saint Anastasia Fellowship (SAF) came to campus for our second monthly paraklesis service to Saint Anastasia. In case you missed last month’s writeup in the Orthodox Observer about our partnership with SAF, you can check it out here. After the service, Father Nikolas gave a wonderful and engaging talk to the children and families of Saint Basil and administered holy unction to the Orthodox faithful in attendance. It is always a restorative experience when we celebrate these services and honor Saint Anastasia. We are so grateful to Father Nikolas and the Saint Anastasia Fellowship for bringing this healing work to the Saint Basil community.
Another highlight of the month was an Experience Fund field trip that our younger children and families took the Norwalk Aquarium in Connecticut. They got to see and touch the mystery of God’s creation in the form of sea life! Experiences like these are so important in their lives. It is friends and supporters like you who make that possible, so thank you!
The month ended with the ever-memorable Greek Independence Day Parade last weekend. Our children, staff, board members, and friends marched down Fifth Avenue proudly sporting traditional Greek costumes, displaying our Saint Basil Academy banners and of course proudly bearing the Greek and American flags. The American flag we carried this year was a special gift presented to Saint Basil Academy by a wonderful veteran-founded company, Semper Fi Flag Supply. They do incredible work, and we are so honored to call them our friends.
We hope to see you all on May 30th at this year’s Saint Basil Academy graduation celebration! If you have never attended Saint Basil graduation before, they are fun and joyful events featuring speeches and performances by the children, clergy, alumni, and special guests. The ceremony will be followed by a delicious luncheon courtesy of our friends at Pan-Gregorian Enterprises under a marquis tent overlooking the Hudson River and West Point Military Academy. This year we have a nursing school graduate, three high school graduates, one middle school graduate, one elementary school graduate, and one of our youngest moving up from pre-k to kindergarten! It is sure to be a heartwarming day, and we hope you can make it.
Sending love and gratitude to each and every one of you,
The Saint Basil Academy Family
Did You Know?
Did you know that Saint Basil founded what is considered by many historians to be the first true hospital? Prior to Saint Basil, there were hospital-like institutions, but they cared only for the wealthy and those who could afford to pay. In the 4th century, Saint Basil founded the Vasiliada, or Basiliad, a hospital complex for all—rich and poor, old and young, and everyone in between. The Vasiliada offered more than just physical health care. It had a church, schools, an orphanage, and more. It was an entire community based on caring and healing of both body and soul.
Support Our Work
As a non-profit 501(c)(3) entity, Saint Basil Academy depends upon the financial support of its beloved friends and donors. Our supporters contribute in many different ways, from monetary and material donations to naming Saint Basil as a beneficiary in life insurance and estate planning. Saint Basil Academy also has several earmarked funds in place for therapeutic art classes and outdoor excursions. Sponsoring a resident, becoming a host family, and/or referring a child to Saint Basil Academy are other vital ways of providing support as well. When you give to Saint Basil Academy, you are helping a child in need in a powerful way.
© Saint Basil Academy
© Saint Basil Academy