OCCHY-Greater Chicago names Assistant for Youth Programs
CHICAGO, IL [OCCHY] — On September 1, 2015, Deacon Alexander Koranda, MDiv., a recent graduate of Saint Tikhon’s Seminary, South Caanan, PA, joined Greater Chicago’s Orthodox Christian Coalition for Healthy Youth as Coalition Assistant for Youth Programs. Under OCCHY’s director, Father Nicholas Dahdal and Project Coordinator, Gordana Trbuhovich, Deacon Alexander will be working with local clergy and parish youth leaders to organize programs and events for raising substance prevention and awareness among teens and adolescents. He will also recruit teens to join the OCCHY Youth Sector and establish a Youth Advisory Committee from representatives of all local Orthodox jurisdictions as well as reach out to Orthodox college students to participate in various OCCHY volunteer efforts.
Born and raised in the Greater Chicago area, Deacon Alexander has been active as a member of Saints Peter and Paul Church, Burr Ridge, IL, where his grandfather, John Sutko, has been serving as choir master for over 60 years. In 2011, Deacon Alexander completed his BA in Organizational/Corporate Communication at Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL. He has worked as a youth guidance counselor and retreat master for diocesan youth camps, both in the east and midwest. Since his teens, he has been deeply involved in Chicago area pan-Orthodox celebrations, giving him appropriate knowledge of the region’s Orthodox Christian demographic. He is currently assigned to Saint George Cathedral, Chicago.
The Orthodox Christian Coalition for Healthy Youth is beginning its fifth year of serving the Greater Chicago Orthodox community under the federal Drug Free Communities grant awarded to Saint George Antiochian Orthodox Church, Cicero, IL. OCCHY is a member of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Further information is available at 708-298-9770, occhycicero@healthyyouth.com, www.healthyyouth.com/pages/ciceroandgreaterchicago.aspx, and www.facebook.com/occhychicago.
