Upcoming Events:

Addicts and Addictions... An Orthodox Perspective - February 20, 2011
Night at Skadarlija Dinner & Dance - February 26, 2011

Recent Events:

Parish Slava, Nativity Of The Most Holy Theotokos - September 19, 2010
Pilgrimage to Russia and Serbia - July 2, 2010
The Meeting of the Lord Serbian Orthodox Monastery - February 14, 2010
Serbian Patriarch Irinej - January 2010
Gala Dinner & Concert - January 9, 2010
PanOrthodox-Friendship Night - November 7, 2009
Parish Slava, Nativity Of The Mother Of God - September 20, 2009
Clergy Confession & Retreat - March 17&18, 2009
Western Diocese Pilgrims on a spiritual journey in HOLY LAND - July 10-23, 2008

 

 

 

Gala Dinner and Concert

With Special Guest:

STEFAN MILENKOVIC

It is our distinct pleasure to invite you to a very special Gala Dinner and Concert, on Saturday, January 9, 2010 at Orange County Performing Arts Center, Samueli Theater, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, CA. Updated information concerning this event will be posted on the website regularly.

The event will include renowned Guest Stars from Motion Pictures, Television and Sports. Entertainment will be provided by:

•  Stefan Milenkovic , violinist

•  Gorjana Zekic , Pianist

•  The Istocnik Choir , Gorjana Zekic, Conductor

To support our Parish Building Fund, a Silent Auction will be held at this event. Your donations of valuable items, such as estate jewelry, fine art or decorative arts, or vacation and travel gifts will be appreciated and will generously help to enhance the evening. Please present your valuable items to the Parish for consideration before January 1, 2010.

Violinist Stefan Milenkovich is recognized interntion-ally for both exceptional artistry and his life-long commitment to humanitarianism. He came to world atten-tion when, at age 10, he was invited to perform for the late U.S. President, Ronald Reagan, at the White House "Christmas Show". This performance was followed by an invitation from the former Soviet President, Mikhail Gorbachev, to perform in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. He has also performed twice for Pope John Paul II in Castelgandolfo, Italy.

His international orchestral appearances include the Berlin Symphony Orchestra, the Helsinki Philharmonic, the Belgrade Philharmonic, the Orchestra of Radio-France, the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra, the National Orchestra of Belgium, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Aspen Chamber Symphony, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Mexico State Symphony, the Orquestra Sinfonica de Estado de Sao Paolo in Brazil, and the Melbourne and Queensland Symphonies in Australia. He has worked with such renowned conductors as Lorin Maazel, Daniel Oren, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Lu Jia, Lior Shambadal and En Shao, among others. In 2002, he was proclaimed "Artist of the 20th Century" in Belgrade, Yugoslavia.

Mr. Milenkovich is deeply committed to international humanitarian causes. He was appointed "Child Ambassador" of the First Children Embassy founded in Medjasi , Yugoslavia , during the war in Bosnia . In 2002, he received the "Lifting Up the World With Oneness Heart" award for his humanitarian activities, handed to him personally by the guru Sri Chinmoy. Most recently, he received the 2003 "Most Humane Person" award in Belgrade , Yugoslavia . He also participated in a number of gala concerts under the auspices of UNESCO in Paris , with such artists as Placido Domingo, Lorin Maazel, Alexis Weissenberg and Yehudi Menuhin.

Mr. Milenkovich's 2009-10 season includes performances with the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Classic FM M-Tel Orchestra ( Bulgaria ) , Varazdin Chamber Orchestra ( Croatia ) , Macedonian Philharmonic Orchestra, The Prairie Ensemble ( US ) , as well as recitals and chamber music performances at the Ravinia Festival ( Chicago ) , Manchester Music Festival ( Vermont ) , Zagreb International Music Festival, Ljubljana Festival. Also anticipated is the release of two major projects: the "Sarabande" project, and the recording of the 2 Violin Concertos by Karol Szymanowsky. Also, soon to be released is a DVD documentary about Mr. Milenkovich.

An avid chamber musician, he performs regularly at the Jupiter Chamber Music Series in New York City , and is the founding member of Corinthian Piano trio featuring pianist Adam Neiman and cellist Ani Aznavoorian. Mr. Milenkovich also performed with Itzhak Perlman at the Perlman Music Program on Shelter Island , Long Island , where he served on the violin faculty from 2000-2004.

Mr. Milenkovich started his career at a young age, performing with his first orchestra at age 5. At age 7, he won the grand prize at the Jaroslav Kozian International Violin Competition. This unprecedented accomplishment opened opportunities and invitations to perform in over 30 countries. At age 16, Mr. Milenkovich played his 1,000th concert in Monterrey, Mexico. That same year, he was either a prizewinner or finalist in the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis ( USA ) , the Queen Elisabeth Competition ( Belgium ) , Hannover Violin Competition ( Germany ) , Tibor Varga Competition ( Switzerland ) , Rodolfo Lipizer Competition ( Italy ) , Paganini Competition ( Italy ) , Ludwig Spohr Competition ( Germany ) , and the Yehudi Menuhin Competition ( England ).

Mr. Milenkovich's discography includes 4 releases on the Italian label Dynamic , and numerous recordings for the Yugoslavian label, PGP . After teaching at the Juilliard School's Pre-College Division for several years, he has recently assumed the position of Associate Professor of Violin at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

 

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Serbian Greek Music Night

Sasha Vujacic Helps Raise Funds for Orange County Parish

Sasha Vujacic, of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team, attended the Pan-Orthodox Friendship Night, hosted by Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos Serbian Orthodox Church in Orange County on November 7, 2009.

His willingness to generously share his time, sign autographs, take photos and donate auction items, including a basketball signed by all members of the team and a pair of his tennis shoes, significantly contributed to the enjoyment of all those present and to the success of the event held at St. John Greek Orthodox Church in Anaheim. An additional attraction for which the Serbian parish is most grateful was Maria Sharapova's donation of an autographed tennis racket which was a highly sought-after auction item.

Established originally by the parishioners of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Orange County as a way to thank the Greek community for its centuries-old love and support, this Friendship Night has been expanded to include all Orthodox Christians and friends.

Now a tradition in Orange County, the evening offers both an opportunity for inter-Orthodox fellowship and fundraising for the Serbian parish which is striving to buy property and build a religious and cultural center.

Adults and children numbering nearly 300, some coming from as far away as Fresno to see their favorite Laker, enjoyed traditional Serbian and Greek style barbecue dinner and pastries prepared by the dedicated and hardworking ladies and men of the Serbian parish.

To add to the festivities, Serbian and Greek bands played lively music as many of those present participated in the traditional circle dances of both cultures. Adults and children alike lined up to be personally greeted by the Lakers star who spent two hours warmly welcoming each individual.

Before the evening's events concluded, with yet another gesture of love and dedication, Sasha thanked everyone for coming and invited them to return next year when he will again be present.

  

A letter from a guest

“I want to thank you and your church for putting on such a nice event. Everyone from the volunteers to the other guests were extremely nice. You made my brother and I feel at home. I really enjoyed the music and the small setting of the event. We had tried to meet Sasha once before at Fiesta Lakers and were unsuccessful because there were too many people and not enough time. It was great that when we finally got to meet Sasha that it was in a more intimate setting and that we were helping out the church at the same time by attending the fundraiser. The only downside was that I did not have that kind of money to bid in the auction. Some of my favorite moments of the night were watching Sasha interact with all of the children. Since our table was right near the autograph and picture table I was able to see Sasha sign a variety of things for the children included a little girl's shoe that she took directly off of her foot and the inside of a little boy's jacket that had nothing to do with the Lakers or Sasha Vujacic . Sasha took the time to talk to the children and made sure that they each had a positive experience. It's moments such as these that make me want to cheer for him even louder than before. It is nice that he truly is a player that people can cheer for both on and off the court. It did not seem to matter how many people were there; Sasha took the time to interact with us all. Throughout the night my brother kept taking pictures of him (mainly because he knew how much I adored Sasha) and when my brother apologized for intruding, Sasha said that he didn't mind. When I finally got to talk to Sasha I handed him a bracelet I made for him that had his name weaved into it along with a little note (in case I was too starstruck to speak). What kind of surprised me was that he actually took the time to read the note right in front of me! It was really special because I got to see the reaction in his face while he read the note. I could tell that he really appreciated his fans and we, the fans, really appreciate all the time that he gave to us.” Denise School

 

Serbian-Greek Music Night at Sasha Vujacic website

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PARISH SLAVA, NATIVITY OF THE MOTHER OF GOD

The celebration of our Parish Slava, the Nativity of The Most Holy Theotokos, on September 20th, was a huge success! The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, served by His Grace Bishop Maxim, was well attended by faithful from our parish and other parishes. We extend our most sincere thanks to His Grace Bishop Maxim, the choir, as well to all of the faithful from neighboring parishes who, with their attendance and support, gave us great encouragement. Yet another special thank you goes to Zorka Lipovic and her family for being kumovi, and to Radmila Rihter, Milanka Radic and the ladies of our KSS for preparing a wonderful luncheon. Our Church was beautified with new fresco/icons donated by Brian and Carry Bullard and Peter and Deborah Djokovich. May God grant them all many, many years of good health and prosperity!

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Western Diocese Pilgrims on a spiritual journey in HOLY LAND
10-23 july 2008

With the Blessing of His Grace Bishop Maxim, A group of 17 pilgrims [G17 plus] from the Western American Diocese embarked on a spiritual journey to the Holy Land starting July 10, 2008.

Click here for full pilgrimage details

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