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Kevin and Sophia Treppa sold extra virgin olive oil through their brand The Best Olive Oil LLC during the 2024 OPA!Fest at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church June 21-23.
Photo by Sarah Wright
TROY — Community members experienced and celebrated different aspects of Greek culture during the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church’s 2024 OPA!Fest.
The annual festival took place June 21-23 at the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, 760 W. Wattles Road in Troy. The event features a wide variety of food and activities that aim to educate about Greek heritage and promote community among attendees.
“This is my fourth festival, and I enjoy seeing people from other churches, neighbors from far and wide, co-workers and friends,” Rev. Friar Paul Patitsas said. “I enjoy being around parishioners and having informal interactions with them and showcasing culture, history and heritage.”
Preparations for this year’s festival have been in the works since the last festival.
“We started more or less immediately after the last festival,” Cornelius Opris, the chairman for OPA!Fest, said. “We have 42 committees and some great people participating and donating their time. I hope people will have a lot of fun and experience the traditions and heritage.”
In terms of food and beverages, there was a wide variety of authentic and homemade meat, salad, coffee, dessert and baked good options in the Gyro Tent, the Kouzina Tent, the Taverna Tent, the Kafenio Tent, and the Glika-Pastry and Sweets Booth. Some of the favorites were the baklavas, the loukoumades, Greek coffee, lamb shank and chicken kabob platters, and gyro sandwiches. Cooking demonstrations and competitions were also going on during the festival.
The Agora, or marketplace, had an array of vendors and organizations present during the festival.
“We invite numerous vendors with small businesses or side businesses,” Parish President Katrina Cloutier said. “There’s a variety of products, plenty of them Greek-related.”
The Best Olive Oil LLC was one of the vendors present at OPA!Fest. The brand was created by Kevin and Sophia Treppa and has been operating for a year. The extra virgin olive oil is made and bottled from one source in Achaea, Greece.
“We’ve been coming here for years, and it’s one of our favorite festivals, so it goes hand in hand,” Kevin Treppa said. “Most people have olive oil supplies from their relatives, but ours is so good they buy it.”
Another vendor, ArtLoft Midtown Detroit, offered different kinds of fashion, accessories and home goods that come from different parts of the world. This global lifestyle brand has been a part of Detroit for over 30 years.
“I’m a cultural person and believe in being a part of every community and have been doing this festival many years,” brand owner Rachel Woods said. “We have a nice selection, and our 1,800-thread-count sheets are amazing.”
Traditional Greek folk dancing is another big part of this festival. Over 200 children and young adults from the OPA! Dancers group perform throughout the event. There were also opportunities to learn dances like the Kalamatiano, the Tsamiko and the Psirto.
“We recruit from all the churches in the metro Detroit area and practice every Tuesday,” OPA! Dancers instructor Tina Souphis said. “We have great parents, and our instructors are former OPA! Dancers.”
For more information, visit stnicholastroy.org.
