BY PATRICK ROCCHIO
A new book captures the
Greek-American experience in
the borough by detailing a story
of triumph in the face of adversity
handed down from grandfather to
grandson.
Perry Giuseppe Rizopoulos recently
published Wheat Songs: A
Greek-American Journey, which
is based on conversations he had
with his grandfather Pericles at
his grandfather’s Pelham Parkway
home about the elder’s time in 1940s
war-torn Greece.
The recollection features the
borough as the jumping off point
for an immigrant’s story that
stretches back decades and then
leaps forward to the present.
The tale is seen through the
prism of conversations Rizopoulos
had with his, ‘pappou’, Greek for
grandfather leading up to Pericles’
transition to Heaven, and is augmented
by a diary kept by Pericles’
brother Panayiotis.
As much as it is a harrowing
tale of survival and ultimate success
in America, it also provides
a window in the borough’s Greek-
American community, which actually
outdates the well-known
Astoria Greek community, said
Rizopoulos.
While much of the book takes
Amtrak derails Metro North progress; MOU still not inked
However, the track is not
clear ahead - because Amtrak
is not cooperating.
“We’ve been close to making
progress with them,” Diaz
said.T
he progress he is referring
to is an MTA preliminary
design contract, which
has been on hold due to ongoing
negotiations of a memorandum
of understanding
with Amtrak.
The MOU would essentially
commit Amtrak to the
project, allowing the MTA
to start construction on the
Amtrak-owned rail lines that
will be shared by the new
Metro North service branch.
Holding up the agreement
is a dispute between the MTA
and Amtrak regarding fi nancial
obligations for repair
work required on portions of
the designated track.
“We know Amtrak owns
these tracks, but their requests
(for compensation)
have to be within reason. The
MTA has been willing to compromise
but Amtrak is being a
bully,” the borough president
said, citing the Bronxdale Avenue
train trestle as one of the
disputed Amtrak properties
that’s in dire need of repair.
Amtrak spokesman Jason
Abrams released a statement
regarding the ongoing
transit conundrum saying,
“Amtrak has been cooperating
with MTA’s planning efforts
regarding the proposed
expansion of Metro-North
train service…Amtrak and
MTA executives have met frequently
in recent months to
try to reach agreement on a
number of key issues regarding
design, construction and
ultimate train operation of
this project.”
Diaz and several thousand
plus Bronxites would strongly
disagree.
“Every time we get close to
the end zone, Amtrak moves
the goal post further away,”
the borough president said,
exhibiting frustration.
Just days after his petition
drive, Metro North held
a public workshop at Albert
Einstein College of Medicine
to break down what the new
stations will entail.
The Morris Park station,
which will be accessed from
Bassett Avenue and Hutchinson
Metro Center will include
an overpass, linking the two
properties.
The trip from Morris Park
to Penn Station will take only
25 minutes.
The Parkchester/Van
Nest station is planned to go
near just east of Unionport
Road, at East Tremont Avenue.
This station will only
be accessible from the East
Tremont Avenue side because
a Con Edison yard prevents
entry to the station on the
track’s north side. That ETA
to Penn is 22 minutes.
The Hunts Point station
will be built near its centuryold
predecessor below Hunts
Point Avenue. This station
will have access from both
sides of the tracks. The MTA
is looking into rehabbing the
current dilapidated building
for future station use. Penn
Station would be a 20-minute
trip from here.
The Co-op City station
would go in the back portion
of Section 5, near Baychester
Village. This one-sided station,
would bring rapid transit
to one of the most isolated
sections of the city, carrying
commuters to Penn Station
in a half hour.
While many focused on
the travel times to Manhattan,
several people noted
the wonderful employment
opportunities this project
would open to Bronxites in
Westchester and Connecticut.
This is a dream come true
to the residents of the east
Bronx, but there is one major
concern that’s been ignored
by the MTA, but didn’t go unnoticed
by those attending
the workshop - parking.
No parking lots will be
constructed for the new commuter
service, according to
Carol Samol in the NYC Department
of City Planning.
A parking lot would cost approximately
$7 million to
build, according to one professional
attending the workshop,
and would require public
funding.
During the 3-hour workshop
attendees were asked to
write down what they want
to see at the new stations.
Surely adequate parking
topped the list.
Another activity asked the
working group how often it is
that they drive to the Morris
Park area vs. taking mass
transit. Again as a shock only
to the MTA, the response was
heavily weighed towards car
use.
But, taking fi rst things
fi rst, a signed agreement
with Amtrak is on Ruben
Diaz, Jr.’s Christmas wish
list, paving the way for the
project to start.
from Page 1
place in Greece, the story-telling
takes place in the borough, and the
borough is more or less a ‘character’
in the book, said Rizopoulos.
“I am an Greek-American and
an Italian-American, and I fell like
if someone asked me how much do
I know about Greece or Greek history,
I would say I know a lot, but
ultimately I know the most about
the Greeks from Mickle Avenue,”
said the author.
He added: “For me, I understand
Greece only through a Bronx
Greek lens…it is very much situated
around Pelham Parkway.”
Playing a major role in his
‘pappou’s’ life was his faith, and
the Zoodohos Peghe Greek Orthodox
Church is mentioned in the
book as having a central place in
his grandfather’s heart.
The book chronicles Pericles
capture by Nazis during the World
War II, his escape, and Pericles’
joining an army during the Greek
Civil War that followed World War
II.
The oral history began as an
‘ethnography’ study for a graduate
school class that Rizopoulos
took.
The class was asked to share a
story about how our grandparents
have shaped us, and Rizopoulos
thought about being shown his
great uncle’s diary when he was
11.
“Within a few moments of sharing
the story with my classmates,
it felt more meaningful and felt
like something I could return to,”
said Rizopoulos. “My pappou and I
sat down and we agreed to do the
oral history aspect of it for graduate
school.”
This ultimately began Rizopoulos
on a fi ve-year writing odyssey
that resulted in Wheat Songs.
The title of the book is drived
from an account where Pericles,
as a child, while working on his
family’s farm, was entertained by
his mother, who sang songs to keep
the children’s spirits up as they
harvested wheat.
Rizopoulos teaches philosophy
at both College of Mount St. Vincent
and Manhattan College.
He is currently pursuing a doctorate
in Interdisciplinary Studies
at Teachers College at Columbia
University.
19 BRONX WEEKLY December 16, 2018 www.BXTimes.com
Book chronicles borough’s Greek-American experience
Author Perry Giuseppe Rizopoulos with his ‘pappou’ Pericles Rizopoulos.
Photo courtesy o Perry Giuseppe Rizopoulos is the au- f Perry Rizopoulos
thor of Wheat Songs, which chronicles
the Greek-American and immigrant experiences
in the borough through the
eyes of a grandson and his grandfather.
Photo courtesy of Perry Rizopoulos
Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. signs the Amtrak petition.
Schneps Community News Group/ Alex Mitchell
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