Ladies Philoptochos Society
Helpers of the poor and needy
We are the women of St. Barbara’s who feed, clothe, visit and raise funds: for neighbors in need in Santa Barbara, and for the ministries of our Metropolis and Archdiocese. Nearly everything we raise goes straight back out to the causes we serve. Come to a coffee hour, give, or join us.
The philanthropic arm of our parish
Philoptochos of the Central Coast on the church steps, October 2026 1 / 7
The Ladies Philoptochos Society is the philanthropic arm of Saint Barbara Greek Orthodox Church and Chapter 4019 of the Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society, the women’s philanthropic organization of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. Philoptochos means “friend of the poor,” and that is the work: a fall food drive for the Santa Barbara Foodbank, toys for children at Christmas, help for neighbors in crisis, and support for students, seminarians and the Patriarchate through our Metropolis and National Philoptochos. We host coffee hours, put on fundraisers through the year, and give nearly all of what we raise, about $10,000 a year, straight back out. Every woman of the parish is welcome, whether you can give an hour on Sunday or only a gift.
National Philoptochos → Metropolis of San Francisco Philoptochos → Bylaws →
Where there is pain and suffering, may we bring Your healing and comfort.
Make us instruments of Your peace and of Your hope, O Lord.
- One of the largest Women’s philanthropic organizations in the United States
- Chapter 4019 Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco
- 501(c)(3) Independent nonprofit · every gift is tax-deductible
Where our giving goes
Nearly 100% of what we raise goes to the causes we serve: about $10,000 a year, given locally, through the Metropolis and nationally.
- Food Drive for the Santa Barbara Foodbank Collected at church every fall, October through mid-November
- Toys for Tots Toy drive from mid-November to mid-December, delivered to Unity Shoppe
- IOCC Fundraiser Hosted at St. Barbara’s for International Orthodox Christian Charities
- Human Trafficking Prevention Awareness with Kingdom Causes; donations welcome
- Sts. Cosmas & Damian Collection Supports the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople
- Saint Basil Academy Collection at the Vasilopita cutting for Epiphany
- Lenten Almsgiving & Coffee Mates Collection table on Sundays and Coffee Mates every Tuesday of Lent
- Metropolis Causes Light the Path student aid and the Kids ’N Cancer luncheon
- Coffee Hours & Feast Day Brunch Five coffee hours a year plus the St. Barbara Feast Day brunch
Fundraisers that make it possible: Holiday Boutique · New Year’s Eve Taverna Night · Cooking Greek with the Newcomers Club · Watercolor & Wine · Wine Tasting in Santa Ynez · Palm Sunday Luncheon
Our Impact in 2024
From the “Look What We Raised Together” board- Local $7,724 Santa Barbara Foodbank, Toys for Tots, Transition House, Little League, our parish
- Metropolis $225 Light the Path student aid
- National $1,291 Hurricane relief, the Patriarchate, church musicians
Where the money went
| Cause | Amount |
|---|---|
| Walk for Suicide Prevention Local | $425 |
| Transition House, No Ball Raffle Local | $100 |
| Santa Barbara Foodbank, food and cash Local | $515 |
| Sleeping bags and socks Local | $900 |
| Light the Path, Hellenic College Holy Cross Metropolis | $225 |
| Hurricane Helene and Ivan relief fund National | $500 |
| Sts. Cosmas & Damian collection for the Patriarchate in Constantinople National | $641 |
| National Forum of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians National | $150 |
| Goleta Valley South Little League defibrillator, from the Holiday Boutique Local | $1,800 |
| St. Barbara general fund, from the Holiday Boutique Local | $2,000 |
| Toys for Tots, Christmas for kids Local | $1,984 |
| Total given in 2024 | $9,240 |
The Holiday Boutique alone netted $6,720. Updated once a year from the treasurer’s report, so members know where each dollar goes.
Calendar 2026–2027
Our year runs September 1 through August 31. Philoptochos events only; board meetings are at 1:00pm, general meetings follow Sunday Liturgy.
Key: MeetingCoffee HourEventFundraiser
September 2026
- Tue 09/15 1:00pm · Board Meeting 1 of 6 Meeting
- Sun 09/27 General Meeting 1 of 6, following Liturgy Meeting
October 2026
- Sat 10/04 IOCC Fundraiser at St. Barbara’s, proceeds to International Orthodox Christian Charities (tentative) Fundraiser
- 10/04–11/15 Food Drive for the Santa Barbara Foodbank Event
- Tue 10/06 1:00pm · Board Meeting 2 of 6 Meeting
- Sun 10/11 Kingdom Causes presentation on Human Trafficking Prevention · Coffee Hour 1 of 5 Coffee Hour
- Sun 10/18 General Meeting 2 of 6, following Liturgy Meeting
- Sat 10/24 10am–2pm · Metropolis Central Coast Regional Philoptochos Meeting at St. Barbara’s, with light lunch Event
November 2026
- Sun 11/01 Sts. Cosmas & Damian Collection for the Patriarchate · Membership presentation · Coffee Hour 2 of 5 Coffee Hour
- Tue 11/10 1:00pm · Board Meeting 3 of 6 Meeting
- Sun 11/15 General Meeting 3 of 6, following Liturgy Meeting
- Sun 11/15 2:00pm · Light the Path Luncheon, The Center, Lakewood (Metropolis student aid) Event
- 11/15–12/13 Toys for Tots Drive Event
December 2026
- Fri 12/04 St. Barbara Feast Day Brunch · Coffee Hour 3 of 5 Coffee Hour
- Thu 12/31 New Year’s Eve Family Taverna Night: tavli, meze kai ouzo (tentative) Fundraiser
January 2027
- Sun 01/03 Vasilopita Cutting for Epiphany · Saint Basil Academy collection · Coffee Hour 4 of 5 Coffee Hour
- Tue 01/05 1:00pm · Board Meeting 4 of 6, vote for the Election Committee Meeting
- Sat 01/09 Cooking Greek with the Newcomers Club: Learn to Make Greek Meze 10am–2pm · Entertain Greek-Style 3–8pm (tentative) Fundraiser
- Sun 01/17 General Meeting 4 of 6, following Liturgy Meeting
February 2027
- Sat 02/20 1–4pm · Watercolor & Wine Fundraiser
March 2027
- Tue 03/02 1:00pm · Board Meeting 5 of 6 Meeting
- Date TBD Wine Tasting in Santa Ynez, details to come Fundraiser
- Tue 03/16 10am · Coffee Mates begins: every Tuesday of Lent through 4/20, place to be announced Event
- Sun 03/21 Almsgiving Collection Table, first Sunday of Lent (also 3/28 and 4/4) Event
- Sun 03/21 General Meeting 5 of 6, following Liturgy Meeting
April 2027
- Sun 04/18 Kids ’N Cancer Luncheon, Newport Beach Event
- Sat 04/24 1:30–5:30pm · Food Prep & Setup Workshop for the Palm Sunday Luncheon Event
- Sun 04/25 Palm Sunday Luncheon · Coffee Hour 5 of 5, with congratulations cake Fundraiser
May 2027
- Tue 05/11 1:00pm · Board Meeting 6 of 6, elections review Meeting
- Sun 05/16 General Meeting 6 of 6, following Liturgy · Elections Meeting
Nothing else is scheduled this year. See the full year for everything we did.
Membership is stewardship, not dues
Membership is stewardship, not dues. Give what you can; every gift is tax-deductible.
- $15 goes to National Philoptochos
- $15 goes to the Metropolis of San Francisco Philoptochos
- A suggested $35 or more stays with our St. Barbara chapter
- Suggested total: $65 or more. Members who give less are just as welcome.
Prefer not to volunteer? A gift alone makes you a member in good standing.
Questions about membership? Email the board or see Membership at National Philoptochos.
Support Philoptochos
You do not need to be a member to give. Every gift is tax-deductible, and nearly all of it goes straight to the causes we serve.
Tax receipts and 501(c)(3) documentation are available from our treasurer.
1205 San Antonio Creek Road, Santa Barbara, CA 93111
Officers, 2025–2027
- Ruth Angelos President
- Milena Bukalic Vice President
- Pam Alexander Treasurer
- Anna Petronakis Recording Secretary
- Catherine McDavid Smith Corresponding Secretary
- Georgia Gastoniotis Advisor
- Afroula Fields Member at Large
Recent events
Metropolis Central Coast Regional Meeting
October 24, 2026Human Trafficking Prevention with Kingdom Causes
October 11, 2026Vasilopita Cutting for Epiphany
January 2026Toys for Tots at Unity Shoppe
December 2025More photos from each event are on the way, and an Instagram page for flyers and quick updates is coming soon.
Nearly a century of Philoptochos
Philoptochos was founded in 1931 by Archbishop Athenagoras, later Ecumenical Patriarch, as Greek immigrant communities across America struggled through the Depression. From the start the Society fed and clothed families in need, auctioned Vasilopites on St. Basil’s Day to care for orphans, and in 1944 bought the property that became Saint Basil Academy, a home for children from war-torn Greece. It sent relief to Greece in 1940, to the Ionian Islands after the 1953 earthquake and to Cyprus in 1974; founded the Children’s Medical Fund in 1989, which has since given nearly $4 million to children’s hospitals; built children’s clinics in Ethiopia and Zimbabwe with IOCC; was a first responder after Hurricane Katrina; and helped raise over $1.5 million to rebuild Saint Nicholas Church and National Shrine at the World Trade Center. Today, with a chapter in nearly every parish, Philoptochos is one of the largest women’s philanthropic organizations in the United States.
At Saint Barbara’s, Philoptochos has long been the parish’s hands for charity: hosting coffee hours and feast day meals, visiting the sick, and raising funds for local, Metropolis and national causes. A fuller chapter history, with our past presidents, is being gathered from the archives.
Read the full history
- 1931 Founded by Archbishop Athenagoras; chapters feed and clothe families through the Depression.
- 1937 Supports the new Holy Cross School of Theology, a commitment that continues today.
- 1940 Hundreds of thousands of packages and an ambulance bearing the Philoptochos name are shipped to Greece.
- 1944 Purchases the property that becomes Saint Basil Academy, a haven for children from war-torn Greece.
- 1949 Helps establish the Greek Orthodox Youth of America (GOYA).
- 1953 Sends food, clothing, medicine and funds after the Ionian Islands earthquake.
- 1956 First National Philoptochos Conference, with the Clergy-Laity Congress in Washington, DC.
- 1963 Annual Sts. Cosmas and Damian collection for the Ecumenical Patriarchate begins; a Department of Social Services follows a year later.
- 1974 Relief for Cyprus: food, clothing and medicine, blood drives, and the “Caress” foster-parent program for displaced children.
- 1989 First Cancer Fund Luncheon, renamed the Children’s Medical Fund in 1991; nearly $4 million raised since.
- 1990s Children’s medical clinics in Ethiopia and Zimbabwe with IOCC; wheelchairs for the Republic of Georgia and Thessaloniki.
- 2005 The Emergency Fund makes Philoptochos a first responder after Hurricane Katrina, and later for fires, floods and earthquakes at home and abroad.
- 2012 A national office in Manhattan; chapters help raise over $1.5 million for Saint Nicholas Church and National Shrine at Ground Zero.
- Today Coats for the homeless, housing for veterans, 2.1 million meals in five years, Operation Classroom, and health education for every generation.
“Not only Philoptochos, but also Philotheos, Philadelphos, Philanthropos and Philoxenos: not only friends of the needy, but friends of God, friends of neighbors, friends of humanity and friends of strangers.”
Archbishop Demetrios
Email us National Philoptochos Metropolis Philoptochos Donate
St. Barbara Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Gifts are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.