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Close Window U.S. and Greek authorities re-dedicate Van Fleet statue in Kastoria
U.S. and Greek authorities re-dedicate Van Fleet statue in Kastoria
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U.S. and Greek authorities re-dedicate Van Fleet statue in Kastoria
U.S. and Greek authorities re-dedicate Van Fleet statue in Kastoria

Kastoria dedicates new statue to U.S. General James Van Fleet

On July 17 Greek citizens dedicated a replica bust of U.S. General James Van Fleet in the northern Greek city of Kastoria. 

U.S. four-star General James Van Fleet led U.S. forces in WWI, WWII and the Korean War.  He also helped Greek army forces defeat the communist insurgency in the area of Kastoria during the Greek Civil War.  Kastoria erected a bust in his honor in 1955 that was destroyed by vandals in 1986, replaced soon thereafter but destroyed again in 1999.  In connection with the 60th the Anniversary of the Marshall Plan, a group of private citizens led by the American Hellenic Progressive Educational Association (AHEPA), Kastoria businessmen Chris and Steve Tsoukas and Van Fleet’s grandson, Joe McChristian, worked tirelessly to replace the Van Fleet bust.  They succeeded in erecting a replica of the original 1955 bust in a park near the village of Mesopotamia where Van Fleet’s headquarters were based.  The replica is made of a special polymer material molded in a cast take from a duplicate of the 1955 bust located in Ft. Hood, Texas.  The replica will be the model for a new marble bust, expected to be unveiled at a ceremony in Kastoria this fall.

Joe McChristian, who had spent a few of his childhood years in Greece, attended the event and spoke in fluent Greek about his grandfather’s love for the Greeks.  Consul General Yee and AHEPA Regional Governor Alfred Barich stressed the importance of preserving the friendship, cooperation and values fostered by Van Fleet and the Marshall Plan.  Embassy Athens’s Naval Attaché, the assistant Information attaché, Consulate staff, the Prefect of Kastoria, mayors of Kastoria and surrounding municipalities, members of parliament, the chief of the A’ Army Corps, media and others also attended.