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Greek Welfare Society

Established on 5 September 1972 as an initiative of the Greek Professionals Association, the Greek Welfare Society (GWS) lobbied for improved educational, health, welfare, childcare and language services for the Greek community, and was influential in ethnicity and multiculturalism debates. In June 1975 it occupied premises at 8 Corsair Street, Richmond, bought with funds provided by the State and federal governments, and in February 1977 opened a bilingual Child Care Centre. More recently, GWS, the Australian Greek Society for the Care of the Elderly (1976), and the Australian Greek Association for People with Disabilities (1987) have focused on providing home care and recreational and cultural services, and establishing aged care facilities for the increasingly ageing Greek-born population.

Nicholas Vlahogiannis