Brigette (Scobas) Morgan, the podcast’s host, answers questions submitted by guests for Season 3's last episode. Catch even more of Grounded in Greek Podcast Shop: www.grounded-in-greek-podcast.myshopify.com Social Media: www.instagram.com/grounded.in.greek/ Contact: groundedingreek@gmail.comBy Brigette (Scobas) Morgan

Konstantinos Vlachos is a linguist, Ph.D. candidate, and the CEO of Glossonauts, a company that offers customized online lessons for people of all ages interested in learning Greek. Glossonauts teaches a brain-friendly methodology to learn Greek, called Suggestopedia. Konstantinos discusses where we’ve gone wrong with teaching all languages, how we…

Georgia and Nick Kandris have been married for almost 15 years, but have known one another for 50 years. They dated in the early 1970s, but went their separate ways. This episode is about rekindled love and goes through their journey: being young in the same hometown, branching off and individually wading through life’s ups and downs, marrying othe…

Georgette Boulegeris is the Grand President of the Daughters of Penelope organization, one that was started in 1929 by women who immigrated from Greece to the United States. It’s rooted in promoting Hellenism, Education, Philanthropy, Civic Responsibility, Family and Individual Excellence. Georgette shares why she wanted to lead the large organizat…

Platon is a photographer who has captured numerous portraits of famous individuals including Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, Mark Zuckerberg, and Adele. He’s won countless awards and shot for many international publications including Rolling Stone, the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, Esquire, GQ, Sunday Times Magazine, and Time ma…

Giovanni Prete is the All for Blue Greek NGO social media manager and founder and leader of the Corfu (Kerkyra) team of the organization. All for Blue’s mission is to protect the seas and oceans through educational programs and experiential cleanup actions. Giovanni and Brigette talk about what’s the most common and craziest waste found through cle…

Two friends from Canada, Athena Dimaras and Katerina Theodorelos, started a Greek-themed dog toy company in October 2022 to bring a little Opaw! home to pets. Their company, Opaw! is still growing and they share how and why the company started, including their toy creation process. The women also talk about why the older generations were against do…

Ellen Karis is a comedian who has been gifted the title of “Greek Goddess of Comedy.” She transitioned from a career on Wall Street to one on the stage in New York and has been hustling in the industry ever since, mixing performing mainstream comedy shows with Greek-specific shows. She talks about the struggles, especially for women, what’s involve…

Brianna Koucos Midgley is the author of Yiayia's Kitchen Children's Book Series. Her and Brigette talk about the process of writing a children’s book as well as the challenges of finishing projects that mean so much to us. They also discuss facing criticisms and Brianna shares how she’s grown through it all by remaining authentic to herself. Find h…

Libby Nicholaou is a certified yoga and meditation teacher. She and Brigette talk about the benefits of yoga and meditation, especially during stressful times and in recovering from traumatic brain injuries. Libby shares how yoga and meditation have helped her connect with her Greek ancestors and the steps she’s taken to learn more about her herita…

Peter Scobas is a data scientist, writer, and most importantly the host’s younger brother! They chat about growing up Greek, the dynamics of their family, sibling memories, and the growth in their relationship as well as their personal growth through the years. November 27th is Peter’s birthday, so Brigette saved this episode slot just for him. Cat…

Theodore Pitsios is an author of 3 fiction books about Greek immigrants including, Bellmaker’s House, Searching for Ithaka, and his newest novel, Walking in the Light. As an immigrant himself, he shares where his inspiration is from, what sparked his writing, what his process is and what’s next (memoirs). You can find out more at theodorepitsios.co…

George Stroumboulis is the co-founder of a custom lighting company, Ideoli Group and the podcast host of “Invigorate Your Business with George Stroumboulis.” George and Brigette talk podcasting, starting a business, the lighting industry, and what embarrassed them growing up that they now think is beautiful. Catch even more of Grounded in Greek Pod…

Konstantine “Dean” Karnazes is an ultramarathoner, speaker, best-selling author, and entrepreneur, as well the “Top 100 Most Influential People in the World” according to TIME magazine. He’s run 50 marathons, in all 50 US states, in 50 consecutive days and he’s run 350 continuous miles. The host and him discuss snippets from his book, The Road to S…

Presbytera Maria Koulianos, St. Raphael School's Principal and Scholé Academy's Lower School Academic Dean, is a delight, her laugh is infectious, and her stories are insightful. She discusses how her vocation as an educator was sparked from a young age and the host and her reminisce on impactful educators, both the positive and challenging ones in…

Kosta Sakellariou is a radiological technologist at a major healthcare system in the East Bay. The host geeks out with him on anatomy and Kosta shares insights into the field he’s been in for the past 14 years, CT scans, and radiation safety. He discusses how his Greek upbringing impacts his approach to work and how the Greek language aided him in …

Elizabeth Chiarel and Maria Diamond are a mother-daughter duo who started and grew a Greek ceramics importing business, So Blue Greek Ceramics and Gifts. They discuss starting a business pre-mass-Internet usage, what’s involved in sourcing products, how they’ve split up their roles, and the joys of all the Greek connections they’ve formed. Their bu…

Julie Karatzis founded Cartoules Press, a letterpress and design studio in 2010 after she couldn’t find the right bilingual wedding invitations that worked for her and her husband’s wedding. It morphed into her full-time business today. We talk about that process, including the joys and challenges she faced, what inspires her designs, and the steps…

Father Konstantinos Koutroubas was ordained a priest a couple years ago and is the Presiding Priest at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. Father Konstantinos shares his path into the clergy, his experience in sharing the joys and hurdles of his parishioners, if chanting in front of people makes him nervous, and what insp…

Amber Theoharis has been in sports broadcasting for over 20 years at places like the NFL Network and Fox Sports, winning herself an Emmy along the way. She talks about how lately she’s been focusing a lot more on storytelling and producing, with HBO’s “The Weight of Gold” documentary under her belt. Amber and Brigette also discuss growing up in hou…

Thanasi Papoulias is the founder of the popular Greek meme Instagram account, “Excuse Me, Are You Greek?” and the apparel line, “Definitely Greek.” He talks about growing up with a mom who instilled the importance of Hellenic culture into him, down to prioritizing Greek dance over soccer. He shares why he started the account, what meme riled up som…

Johnny Livanos is the founder of Stray Dog Wild Gin. As a half-Greek, half-Italian, he knows Americans are familiar with Italian food and wines but wants to help make the Greek culture and its food and drinks even more alive and well-known in America. He describes his Greek-sourced gin ingredients, the story behind the gin’s name, why gin, and the …

Three guests share their part in a journey that involves reuniting with family in Greece. Gonda Van Steen is a researcher, author, and the Koraes Chair of Modern Greek and Byzantine History, Language, and Literature at King’s College in London. In this episode she explains a piece of Greece’s history that is not super well-known. For the past ten y…

Maria Zira, the host’s cousin from Greece, shares the effort and emotions that went into starting her own accounting firm, Sigma Accounting, in Arta, Greece. She talks about what inspired her to go into accounting and her goals for the company. Brigette and her also reminisce on the first time they met in-person. Catch even more of Grounded in Gree…

Ancient Greek high school teacher, Elodie Kabarakis shares her passion for the culture and why she created a non-profit, Apostrophos (www.apostrophos.org), all about educating people around Ancient Greek history. She excitedly talks mythology, language, and important individuals and works in history, including how she likes to make those topics dig…

Opera singer (Soprano) and Doctor of Musical Arts, Michele Patzakis talks about how she discovered her musical soul at a young age and blended her experience and passion for music with research in Vocal Arts Medicine. She discusses where technology is today in understanding vocal folds and how opera differs from other genres of music. Her successfu…

Executive chef, Christos Bisiotis is passionate about bringing Greeks back to their roots. He talks about what’s been lost over the years, the stress of the kitchen, key ingredients from Greece and his plans for opening a restaurant to honor his grandmother. His culinary background is full of noteworthy experiences including cooking at and launchin…

George Scobas and Georgia Kandris, the host's dad and aunt, are siblings with different upbringings but a shared love of family. And yes, they talk about their similar names and how important names are in the Greek culture. This brother and sister also discuss their strict and religious childhoods, with immigrant parents who prioritized a hard work…

Luxury jewelry designer Katerina Marmagioli shares her path from law and international trade consulting to luxury jewelry design. She talks about the modern jewelry production process, unique components she incorporates into her jewelry and asymmetrical shapes in nature that inspire her designs and make her stand out. You can find her pieces at kat…

Peter Poulos reminisces on the lessons he took from his dad, a Greek immigrant, who founded New York City's famous Papaya King takeout restaurant. Peter laughs about his dad being a sticker, talks about their customer-centered mindsets and shares all the little things he learned from his dad that helped make the juices and Frankfurters business a s…

Greek Folk Dance Director, Niko Panagiotakopoulos talks about when he transitioned from dancing because it was what his mom wanted, to dancing because he truly wanted to do it. He shares some fun competition stories, interesting facts on Greek dance, and the importance it has on his life today. Catch even more of Grounded in Greek Podcast Shop: www…

Welcome to Grounded in Greek! Brigette is Greek and looking to learn more about her heritage while doing what she loves most -- hearing and sharing people's stories. Get to know Brigette and what's to come in this podcast. Enjoy! Catch even more of Grounded in Greek Podcast Shop: www.grounded-in-greek-podcast.myshopify.com Social Media: www.instagr…