Jimmy Pappas dba Pacific Valley Insurance Services

American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association
Contact: AHEPA Headquarters Phone: 202.232.6300 E-mail: [email protected]

For Immediate Release | July 20, 2024

AHEPA Marks 50th Dark Anniversary of Invasion, Occupation of the Republic of Cyprus

A Half Century of Occupation is Unacceptable

Supreme President Savas C. Tsivicos, a native son of Paphos, Cyprus, has issued a statement on the 50th dark anniversary of the illegal invasion of the Republic of Cyprus by Turkey that occurred July 20, 1974 and subsequent ongoing illegal occupation:

Today, on the eve of our historic 102nd AHEPA Family Supreme Convention—the first one ever held in Cyprus— we observe a dark and solemn day—the 50th anniversary of the illegal invasion and illegal occupation of the Republic of Cyprus by the Republic of Turkey, an unreliable NATO-member country under the Erdogan regime.

Today, AHEPA—a revered and time-honored American-based Hellenic heritage organization woven deeply into the fabric of America—convenes its global membership in Cyprus—a U.S. strategic partner and EU member—in a strong show of solidarity and to say, ‘Enough!’ and that a half century of injustice and division must end.

To this very day Turkey’s act remains an intolerable one; an act that is a gross violation of the rule of law, human rights, and democratic ideals. We pause to remember the innocent civilians who lost their lives and the individuals who went missing, including five American citizens, four of whose investigations remain incomplete. The illegal invasion and occupation caused the displacement of 200,000 Greek Cypriot refugees who to this day are unable to return to their homes. This, too, is a blatant violation of human rights as determined by the European Commission on Human Rights. Moreover, Turkey's restrictions upon religious freedom and destruction of Cyprus' cultural and religious heritage in Turkish-occupied Cyprus have been well-documented by the U.S. Helsinki Commission, the Law Library of Congress, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and several media publications.

We outright condemn Turkey’s history of provocative actions and constant assault on international law directed at Cyprus and deem them unacceptable. It is our hope the two sides resume their dialogue and work to resolve difficult issues to achieve a just and viable settlement. However, Turkish hostility under the Erdogan regime has not set the proper tone for talks, and furthermore, Turkish intransigence based on outdated and flawed positions must end.

We urge the U.S. government to convey a strong message to Turkey that it must play a constructive role in the movement of confidence-building measures, which includes the removal of 40,000 Turkish troops from the island. We maintain our longstanding contention that these troops would serve a better purpose elsewhere, especially to NATO, as opposed to Cyprus.

More must and can be done.

The time is now for the United States and the global community to become engaged determinedly with the Cyprus problem with the same level of focus and diplomatic resources they devote to Ukraine, whose invasion by Russia draws a parallel to the invasion of Cyprus by Turkey.

The time is now for Turkish military personnel to allow The Committee on Missing Persons the access it needs to excavate and properly identify the remaining missing persons and bring closure, resolution and peace to families who have been grieving for a half century.

These actions are in the best interests of the United States, which has conveyed appreciation for the strategic partnership it has with the Republic of Cyprus; a partnership that has evolved to its highest level yet, embarking on a Strategic Dialogue.

The time is now to end painful division and the anguish of occupation and instead foster peace and deliver a lasting justice for Cyprus—and yes, for Europe.

Our hope is we will no longer need to observe this solemn anniversary, but instead, celebrate the anniversary of a settlement. AHEPA remains committed to doing all within its power, and pledges to continue to work with all like-minded organizations, to keep the Cyprus issue in the public eye until a just and viable solution that benefits all Cypriots is realized. This week, during our time in Cyprus, we renew our oath and we declare that we are committed and determined to redouble our efforts until Cyprus is truly liberated!

# # #

Pictured below: AHEPA participation at PSEKA's Candlelight Vigil for Cyprus at the steps of the U.S. Capitol.

Founded in 1922 in Atlanta, Georgia, on the principles that undergirded its fight for civil rights and against discrimination, bigotry, and hatred felt at the hands of the Ku Klux Klan, AHEPA is the largest and oldest grassroots association of American citizens of Greek heritage and Philhellenes with more than 400 chapters across the United States, Canada, and Europe.
AHEPA's mission is to promote the ancient Greek ideals of Education, Philanthropy, Civic Responsibility, and Family and Individual Excellence through community service and volunteerism.
For more information, please visit www.ahepa.org.

Changes To Past Relevant Work and Disability Determinations
July 15, 2024 • By Ann Biddle, Litigation Supervisor, Urban Justice Center’s Mental Health Project

Reading Time: 2 Minutes
Last Updated: July 15, 2024

In fiscal year 2023, more than 1.8 million people applied for disability benefits through Social Security’s two programs: Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

Until recently, Social Security required adult applicants to provide their work history going back 15 years. That’s because the inability to work is key to Social Security’s definition of disability.

In general, Social Security finds adult applicants to be disabled only if they have a severe medical condition that either prevents them from doing any substantial work for at least 1 year or is expected to result in death.

Based on this strict definition of disability for both SSDI and SSI, it’s not surprising that Social Security’s disability application focuses on a person’s illnesses and injuries, limitations, treatment, and work history.

But recalling the details of 15 years of employment – job titles, duties, dates, etc. – can be a major challenge. At the Urban Justice Center, our clients often struggle to provide accurate information from their past. To improve their work history narrative while their disability application is pending, we routinely help them to update and clarify information about their previous jobs.

Thankfully, Social Security recently published a new rule that reduces the period it considers when determining whether a person has past relevant work (PRW).

Effective June 22, Social Security began considering work going back 5 years, not 15. In addition, work is no longer relevant if the job lasted less than 30 calendar days.

You can read more about changes in the disability evaluation process in Social Security’s press release.

Decreasing the relevant work period from 15 to 5 years will make it easier for people to accurately report their work history. The reduction also makes sense given Social Security’s recent efforts to modernize the vocational policy that is used to make disability decisions. Research indicates that certain types of skills – namely, “manual” skills – can significantly deteriorate in 5 years.

The PRW changes will reduce the time it takes for applicants to fill out Social Security’s work history forms. This is a small step to simplifying the disability application process. Social Security also benefits by receiving better quality information earlier in the evaluation process.

Ultimately, millions of people applying for disability should see a reduction in processing times.

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Social Security Pays Benefits to Children After the Death of a Parent
By Kathleen Romig, Office of the Commissioner

Reading Time: 2 Minutes
Last Updated: June 20, 2024

When many people think of Social Security, retirement springs to mind. But did you know that about 2.7 million children receive Social Security? More than half of these children get benefits after the death of a parent who worked and paid Social Security taxes.

In fact, 98 out of 100 children in this country could get Social Security if a working parent dies. In some cases, the child’s surviving parent is eligible for benefits as well.

The death of a parent can have negative financial, health, and educational effects on children, according to research by David Weaver of the University of South Carolina published in Population Review in 2019. When tragedy happens, we can help.

Social Security benefits are very valuable for surviving children and their families. They come from all walks of life and all races and ethnicities, income levels, geographic locations, and more.

We estimate that Social Security Survivors Insurance is equivalent to a life insurance policy with a face value of $930,000 for a young worker with average earnings who leaves behind a spouse and two children.

We base the monthly benefit amount on the earnings of the deceased parent. The average surviving child benefit is more than $1,000 per month. We pay benefits until the child turns 18 or 19, if the child is in high school, and is not married. A stepchild, grandchild, step-grandchild, or adopted child may be eligible for monthly benefits under certain circumstances.

Survivors' benefits may be payable to an adult child of a deceased worker if they have a disability that began before age 22, they are not able to work and meet all eligibility requirements.

If a child in your life has lost a parent, it’s important for the child’s family to reach out to us as soon as possible. The date you contact us to file an application can affect when the child’s benefits begin.

You can call us at 1-800-772-1213 between 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. We can usually schedule an appointment in 30-60 days. We will let you know what information you need to apply. We provide free interpreter services by phone or in person in your local Social Security office.

To learn more, visit our Survivors Benefits and Parents and Guardians webpages.

https://www.ssa.gov/survivor

https://www.ssa.gov/people/parents/

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Jimmy Pappas dba Pacific Valley Insurance Services Life, Landlord, Renters, Business, Medicare, Group Health, Workers Comp, Annuities, Flood, and more

And people wonder why businesses are leaving California…

Happy Mom’s Day!

Happy Mom's Day!

Christos Anesti (Christ Has Risen)!

Great and Holy Pascha

Christ Is Risen!

Truly He Is Risen!
�Χριστὸς ἀνέστη!

Ἀληθῶς ἀνέστη!

"It is the day of Resurrection; let us be radiant for the festival, and let us embrace one another. Let us say, O brethren, even to those that hate us: Let us forgive all things on the Resurrection; and thus let us cry:

Christ is risen from the dead, by death He has trampled down death, and on those in the tombs He has bestowed life."
�(Doxastikon of Great and Holy Pascha)

It was with deep sorrow and a heavy heart that I received a call late yesterday from my Thea (Aunt) Stella Pappas who informed me of the passing of my beloved Uncle, Harry J. Pappas.

My Uncle Harry was more than an Uncle; he was a mentor, he was an inspiration, and for about 15 years, he was also my boss!

He enabled my wife and I to return to school and finish our college educations.

He stepped in when my father passed away to make sure that my mother and our family had the financial and business support we needed to finish building and selling our Oregon broadcast operation that my father had re-possessed a year before so that my mother could retire with financial security.

I was privileged to spend countless hours with him working on various business projects, discussing negotiation strategies, evaluating, editing, and negotiating contracts of all types.

I could go on and on, but I also need to highlight other experiences such as meeting Jack Kemp at a dinner honoring Alex Spanos, going on an African safari, and sipping Metaxa during a high-speed takeoff in a private jet.

He knew and interacted with so many people during his active and successful career and social life.

His energy was boundless, his devotion to his family and his business was fierce, and his presence would instantly fill a room.

May God bless your soul, my dear Uncle, and may your memory be eternal!

Below are some excerpts from a 2007 biography about his business success and legacy.

Biography of Harry J. Pappas Business Success, Community Service, and Integrity Underscore the Life of this Broadcast Industry Leader:

"Be an 'A number one' person"; that was the admonition of John Pappas to his youngest son Harry.

Such lessons were commonplace in the Pappas household, where honor, integrity, loyalty, hard work, and patriotism were greatly admired in others and expected from the Pappas children. The ethical foundation laid by Harry J. Pappas' parents, his siblings, and his uncle, had an enormous impact in shaping the man that Harry would become.

In fact, to know about Harry J. Pappas, one must know a little about his family history and his formative years.

John and Katherine Pappas immigrated to the United States from the island of Crete, Greece. Settling in Utah, John worked for a time in the coal mines, where in the event of a cave-in, the rule was "mules out first," because "mules cost money -- Greeks don't."

The dangers of mining and the callousness of the mine's owners caused John to quickly leave the mining business to start a family farm, where he raised sheep and grew grapes and various grains. Katherine was the quintessential Greek-American homemaker, offering limitless amounts of love tempered by discipline.

While in Utah, Katherine gave birth to twin boys, Pete and Mike, and a girl, Mary. Life in Utah was difficult, sometimes unbearably so.

In pursuit of a better life, John picked up his family and moved to Modesto, in the heart of California's fertile San Joaquin Valley, where so many other immigrants from Crete had settled.

It was here that John and Katherine's fourth child, Harry, was born in 1946.

Harry's future career began with a school tour...

Pete and Mike's fifth-grade teacher thought that her class would learn more about the world by taking field trips to see how local businesses operated. One of these trips was to radio station KTRB in Modesto, a trip that would leave an indelible mark on the twins.

Pete and Mike were impressed by the men working at KTRB, dressed in white shirts, suits, and ties. Here was a profession that commanded respect, they thought. Moreover, the building was air-conditioned, a far cry from the hot summer sun under which their father toiled in the fields. In the early 1950s, a new radio station, KBOX, sprang up in Modesto. Full of moxie, Pete and Mike asked the station manager, Milt Hibdon, if they could have their own radio show. They had been turned down at Modesto's leading station, KTRB. Milt laughed, threw a stack of contracts on the desk, and told them they would have to sell their own advertising to have a show.

Within two weeks, the brothers returned the contracts -- they had sold all of the ads for their first program, and "Pete and Mike's Dance Time" was born. The show grew from one hour on Saturday nights to two hours, six nights a week, and eventually was broadcast on two stations simultaneously, Pete at KBOX and Mike at KGDM (now KRAK) in Stockton. A Friday night television variety show on Stockton's KTVU, produced and hosted by the twins, followed shortly thereafter.

Pete and Mike's success as on-air personalities led to their sponsorship of dances at the California Ballroom each Saturday night. Crowds of 500-800 teenagers would pack the hall to hear covers of the new music of the day -- Rock & Roll -- performed by a large, live band.

Young Harry got his first taste of entrepreneurship here, working for his brothers running the soft drink concession, while sister Mary sold the tickets in the box office. Here, Harry learned an important business lesson: control the cash. After graduating from high school, the twins entered the military, Pete in the Navy and Mike in the Marine Corps.

Upon their honorable discharge in the late 1950s, they accepted positions as salesmen-announcers at separate radio stations. Undoubtedly, that fifth grade trip to KTRB had firmly planted in the boys' minds the notion that this was the profession for them. Before long, Pete established himself as the top-billing salesman at his station, and Mike became the manager of yet another station. Mike worked for a station group owner called Golden Pacific Group, which at the time held a construction permit from the Federal Communications Commission to build a new AM station in Las Vegas, Nevada.

After discussions with Golden Pacific, Mike was named the General Manager and Pete the Station Manager of KVEG-Las Vegas.

February 1962 probably wasn't the best time to build a radio station in Las Vegas. The area's 210,000 residents were served by six AM and three FM stations, three television stations, and two daily newspapers. Of the radio stations, only three were operating in the black. Only one television station was consistently making a profit. Yet, in only its fourth month of operation, KVEG took in more money than it spent.

The station never looked back. It is worth noting that broadcasting in the 1960s was dominated by station owner-operators. Even group owners such as Golden Pacific were committed to their communities and their professions and were fierce watchdogs over local governments, a far cry from the modern-day multinational conglomerates that own so many broadcast outlets. The commitment to localism demonstrated by Golden Pacific and other owners had a huge impact on the brothers that would last their entire lives.

These mentors taught the Pappas brothers that true broadcasters worked to serve the audiences first and never compromised their role as public trustees for selfish business interests.

Harry graduated from high school in 1963 and decided to move in with his brothers in order to attend the University of Nevada at Las Vegas.

College lasted just one semester though, as Harry gave in to the siren song of the radio business. He joined the KVEG staff as a salesman and part-time announcer, adopting the on-air moniker "Harry Holiday." Watching his brothers work molded Harry. At KVEG, he was indoctrinated in all facets of radio station operations.

Although the Pappases had an excellent relationship with Golden Pacific, and the company was doing well, the brothers had a burning desire to be the owners of their own radio station. They sold the stock they had acquired in KVEG back to Golden Pacific and began to look for a good investment. Their search took them back to the San Joaquin Valley, to the community of Tulare.

An analysis of the Tulare radio market showed that nearly all of the area's stations were profitable or at least breaking even -- that is, except for KGEN. Tulare County was, and still is, a largely agricultural, rural area. So, it's not hard to imagine that KGEN's Country & Western format would have attracted plenty of listeners. Yet, poor management decisions drove the owner to seek federal bankruptcy protection.

The three brothers took their savings and the proceeds from the sale of their KVEG stock, a total of $35,000, and purchased KGEN; $5,000 was left over from the purchase for working capital.

Within four years, the station's billing had risen sixfold. The profits from operations financed the construction of a sister station, KBOS, which became one of the most popular FM stations in the Fresno and Tulare-Kings Counties markets.

The Pappas Brothers, throughout their careers, were drawn to the challenge of "doing something that others said couldn't be done." This became the model for the Pappases' success: find a diamond in the rough, a neglected or poorly-run station, purchase it at a distressed price, and do whatever it takes to steer it back to profitability.

The brothers never bought a station that was already a success; they took others' failures and made them successes, "turning sows' ears into silk purses," as the saying goes. Where failing stations weren't available, they would look for an opportunity to build a station from the ground up.

On the heels of their success, Harry set out to pursue his next dream, one of a new independent television station to serve Central California. There had been seven previous attempts to establish such a station, and all had failed. Harry educated himself in all aspects of television broadcasting, and he studied the business plans of the seven failures. He resolved that he and his brothers would never repeat those mistakes.

Moreover, the federal government had recently adopted new rules limiting the programming content ownership interests of the Big Three networks; this created a much more competitive landscape, resulting in the ability of independent stations to purchase quality programming no longer owned or controlled by the networks.

However, the financing picture wasn't as attractive. Banks and other well-heeled investors only saw the seven failures that had come before; they couldn't understand the opportunity that the new government rules had presented. It was time for a new strategy -- "instead of getting one investor to put up a million dollars, you get a million investors to put up one dollar each."

The tactic worked; based on the Pappases' reputation for integrity and success, the fact that they were local people with local relationships, and the future prospects for the station, local businessmen, relatives, and smaller investors contributed the required capital, and construction began.

On October 11, 1971, viewers in the Fresno-Visalia market welcomed their newest television station, KMPH -- one letter for each initial of "Mike," "Pete," and "Harry."

Harry served as General Manager of KMPH from its inception. After all, it was he who had provided the vision and passion for television that had brought the station into existence.

By 1976, a new federal rule prohibiting common ownership of television and radio stations within the same market was set to go into effect. In order to avoid running afoul of federal law, a realignment of the brothers' interests was engineered.

In June 1977, Mike purchased his brothers' interests in KGEN and KBOS, becoming sole owner. Pete bought his brothers' interests in KTRB and KHOP in Modesto, radio stations which had been purchased by the Pappases a number of years before; likewise, Pete became sole owner of his stations. A side benefit of the exchange was that it made the future disposition of the radio properties much simpler, providing for the early retirement of the twins.

Harry purchased his brothers' interests in Pappas Television Incorporated, becoming the largest single shareholder in the parent company of KMPH. The next year, Harry's solely-owned firm, Pappas Telecasting Incorporated, purchased all of the assets of Pappas Television Incorporated in a leveraged buy-out, paying the original shareholders $4.75 for every $1.00 they had invested. Harry says, "I did an LBO before I knew what that was."

With ownership interests swapped, Pete and Mike seemed prepared to settle into a simpler life. But fate was not so kind to the twins; while visiting with family and friends in Price, Utah in August of 1986, Pete Pappas suffered a massive fatal heart attack. In January of 1990, Mike Pappas passed away from heart failure after suffering from cardiac problems for years. An era was over, but a new era, one of building a television empire, was about to begin.

The years following Harry's acquisition of KMPH saw steady growth.

Not only was KMPH consistently ranked as one of the top independent television stations in the United States, but after several years of competitive hearings, Pappas' applications to construct new stations in North Carolina and Nebraska were approved. WHNS-Asheville and KPTM-Omaha went on the air in 1984 and 1986, respectively.

Both were the first UHF commercial independent stations to serve their markets. Additionally, WHNS achieved the distinction of being one of the highest-rated independent stations in the U.S. within 90 days of sign-on, and KPTM was long ranked among the top five independent stations in the U.S.

In 1988, Harry was approached by executives from Fox, who were looking to expand the distribution system for Rupert Murdoch's fledgling fourth network. Fox's Barry Diller applied a "full-court press," badly wanting KMPH and Pappas' other stations to affiliate with the network.

When the network appeared headed for success and the deal was right, Harry agreed to a Fox affiliation for KMPH. The decision paid off, as the Fox Network has grown to a position of parity with the other "Big Four" networks. Besides KMPH, Pappas has gone on to affiliate other stations with Fox: KPTM-Omaha, WHNS-Asheville, KTVG and KSNB-Lincoln, Nebraska, KBFX-Bakersfield, and KPTH-Sioux City, Iowa.

Additionally, the company received the Fox Broadcasting Outstanding Affiliate Achievement Award in 1989 for Harry's idea to create the Fox Children's Network (FCN). By its 10th year of operation, FCN was a business unit worth several hundred million dollars. FCN was a Fox affiliated stations program cooperative wherein the profits from its operation were apportioned to each affiliated station in accordance with its audience contribution to the whole. While FCN had all the classic advantages of a network system of distribution to local stations, it was revolutionary in the respect that all of the network's profits flowed to the stations. Along the way, the Pappas station group has been expanded continually through construction of new stations and opportunistic acquisition of existing ones.

By the end of 2007, the company owned or operated stations in the following markets: Los Angeles; San Francisco; Houston; Sacramento; West Palm Beach, Florida; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Greensboro, North Carolina; Austin, Texas; Fresno, California; Green Bay, Wisconsin; Des Moines, Iowa; Omaha, Nebraska; El Paso, Texas; Lincoln, Nebraska; Reno, Nevada; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Yakima, Washington; Columbus, Georgia; Bakersfield, California; Corpus Christi, Texas; Sioux City, Iowa; Yuma, Arizona; Eureka, California; and North Platte, Nebraska. In Fresno, Lincoln, Omaha, and Reno, Pappas had duopolies (two stations in one market).

The Pappas Telecasting Companies group of affiliated stations was the largest privately-held, commercial television broadcast group in the United States in terms of U.S. Household coverage as defined by Nielsen Media Research.

Stations in Fresno, Los Angeles, Asheville-Greenville-Spartanburg, Green Bay, Des Moines, Omaha (two stations), Reno, and Sioux City, had been built from the ground up by Pappas, which was one of the largest constructors of new television stations in the U.S.

Other facilities purchased by Pappas had been significantly upgraded, usually with new, more powerful transmitters and/or better transmitter sites. For example, in 2002, KAZH-Houston was moved to the Senior Road Tower Farm, where all of Houston's VHF and its leading UHF stations are located, and its transmitter power was increased to five Megawatts. And WSWS (now called WLGA)-Columbus, Georgia/Opelika, Alabama had relocated its transmitting facility adjacent to that of the market-leading VHF stations.

An interesting case study in the building of television stations surrounds Pappas' construction of KAZA-TV in Los Angeles. Pappas purchased the construction permit for this station, which had been allocated to Catalina Island -- 22 miles off the California coast, with a population of only 3,500 -- hardly the ideal location for a television transmitter.

The company undertook a lengthy engineering and legal effort, which culminated in the FCC allowing KAZA-TV's transmission facilities to be located atop Mount Wilson in July, 2001. Mt. Wilson is home to the transmitter sites of all of Los Angeles' VHF stations' and most of its successful UHF stations.

In 1995, Harry again put his money on a fledgling network, The WB. WTWB-Greensboro was re-launched in September 2000 and by the following May was recognized with WB's "Froggie" award as the fastest growing affiliate in primetime. KFRE-Fresno became a WB affiliate on January 1, 2001.

KXVO-Omaha consistently ranked as one of the top WB affiliates in the U.S. and KREN-Reno was a leading performer among WB affiliates, particularly among stations in markets of similar size. Also, KPWB-Des Moines was constructed by Pappas in 2001 and grew rapidly to outrank and outperform the PBS, PAX and Fox affiliates in just 15 months. The bet paid off -- the Pappas-owned WB affiliates made significant inroads versus their competitors and continue to grow in service to the public.

In January 2006, Warner Bros. and CBS stunned the broadcast world with the announcement that they would shutter their WB and UPN networks and form a single new network, called The CW, in September 2006. After considering the potential of a new network backed by two of the industry's most prolific producers of television programming, Pappas decided to affiliate ten of its stations with The CW. On September 18, The CW made its debut, covering nearly the entire United States, including Pappas stations WCWG-TV/Greensboro, KFRE-TV/Fresno, KCWI-TV/Des Moines, KXVO-TV/Omaha, KCWL-TV/Lincoln & Hastings-Kearney, KREN-TV/Reno, KCWK-TV/Yakima, WLGA-TV/Columbus, KSWT-DT/Yuma-El Centro, and WSWS-LP/North Platte.

Not long after the announcement of the formation of The CW, Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. fired its own volley in the network wars -- the establishment of its second network, MyNetworkTV. Showcasing English-language versions of the telenovela concept that is so popular in Latin America, MNTV launched September 5, with an affiliate lineup that included Pappas' KDMI/Des Moines, KPTM-DT and KKAZ-CA/Omaha, KDBC-DT/El Paso, and KPTH-DT/Sioux City.

Incidentally, Harry's first WB affiliate, channel 31 in Sacramento, was also rescued from financial distress. Harry purchased debt secured by two television stations, thus allowing the former owner to keep his stations out of the hands of creditors. As a side benefit, Harry was given the opportunity to buy one of the two stations, channel 31.

Pappas Telecasting made substantial improvements in news programming and facilities. The ratings soared, revenues and profits increased, and the station was sold three years later for a substantial profit. That profit has since helped finance more growth.

Pappas' other broadcast interests included Pappas Teleproductions, a television commercial and program production studio based in Fresno, founded in 1980. PTP has produced award-winning commercials, documentaries, and video presentations for clients ranging from Fortune 50 companies to local businesses. They shot on location in Israel and the Middle East, Europe, Asia and throughout the United States. Their editing, graphics, and postproduction skills were unsurpassed in Central California and widely respected throughout the West.

And KTRB-AM, Modesto, California, the same station that young Pete and Mike toured so many years ago, was ultimately purchased by Harry from Pete's beloved wife, Bessie Pappas. It was authorized by the FCC to relocate its transmitter site and to be licensed to serve San Francisco and the entire Bay Area. The station was re-launched in the Bay Area in February 2007. Taking the place of KTRB in Modesto was a new station put on the air by Pappas - KMPH-AM 840.

Successful entrepreneurs are sometimes driven to venture outside of their core businesses, especially when their vision generates idea after idea.

Harry was a co-founder and past member of the Board of Directors of Visalia Community Bank, founded in 1977. Hariton Homes was Pappas' homebuilding entity, which had successfully constructed developments in California and Colorado. And Harry had purchased and rehabilitated a number of properties, most notably a Visalia, California shopping center that had been vacant for two years.

Many in the community considered it to be the biggest eyesore on Mooney Boulevard. But within a year and a half, Harry's company had built additional structures, and the shopping center was fully leased. The shopping center was, in part, a thank you to the original shareholders in KMPH for having faith and trust in Harry and his brothers when larger investors had not. Harry allowed them to purchase shares in the property for one penny each, a nominal amount, and a bargain even considering the center's distressed value. When the property was sold, each share returned $550.00 to the investors.

Those who have achieved success are often recognized with awards, and this held true for Harry. He was fortunate enough to have been honored a number of times and in a number of ways.

He received the prestigious Ellis Island Medal of Honor from the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations, designed to honor "remarkable Americans who exemplify outstanding qualities in both their personal and professional lives, while continuing to preserve the richness of their particular heritage."

He received the American Hellenic Institute's Hellenic Heritage Achievement Award which "recognizes individual Greek Americans, business leaders and members of Congress for their achievements."

He received the American Broadcast Pioneer Award from the Broadcasters' Foundation, recognizing broadcasters who have "made an enormous contribution to the broadcasting industry and their respective communities."

He was honored as an Archon by the Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church for outstanding service to the Church and distinguished leadership within the community.

He was invited to give expert testimony before the Subcommittee on Communications of the House of Representatives during hearings to consider regulations affecting the communications industries.

He testified before en banc hearings of the Federal Communications Commission regarding proposals to modify the Financial Interest in Syndication rules.

He testified before the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet of the House of Representatives during a hearing held with regard to the Subcommittee's consideration of H.R. 3717, the "Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2004".

He received the American Hellenic Council of California's Theodore Saloutos Award, presented to a "distinguished member of the Hellenic-American community for his or her extraordinary accomplishments and devotion to Hellenism".

He was inducted into Broadcasting & Cable's Hall of Fame, the industry's highest honor.

Of course, implicit in a successful career is the obligation to give back to one's community. This had been one of Harry's beliefs since his earliest days in broadcasting when he witnessed first-hand Golden Pacific Group's dedication to serving all the people of the local communities served by broadcast stations.

Toward that end, Harry had served as a member of the board of directors for a variety of organizations, including Mill Creek Hospital in Visalia, the Executive Committee of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, KVPT-Valley Public Television in Fresno, All Saints Foundation, Order of Saint Andrew (served as Western Director), and Valley Children's Hospital Foundation.

Additionally, Harry had served on the boards of the following broadcast industry organizations: Fox Network Board of Governors; National Association of Broadcasters (three terms); Independent Television Stations of America (served the maximum four full terms), and the Television Bureau of Advertising.

Harry and his wife Stella started two foundations to aid their church: the Harry J. and Stella A. Pappas Foundation for Orthodox Christianity, a supporting organization for the religious, charitable, youth education and cultural activities of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America; and the St. George Greek Orthodox Church Foundation in Fresno, California.

They contributed personally to hundreds of worthy causes at schools, churches, community groups, and to needy people. As Harry and Stella say, "Giving till it hurts means giving so it helps."

Harry's broadcasting career has been guided by a set of principles that he calls "The Six Ps."

People -- Find the best people to work for the organization. Treat them like you want to be treated. Ask them to be their best and create an enjoyable environment so that they can flourish.

Power -- Maximize the signal of each station so as to reach the widest possible audience with the clearest picture.

Programming -- Secure the best available programming in order to attract the greatest number of viewers. Offer what other stations can't or won't provide to the viewers.

Promotion -- Give the audience a reason to watch -- not just during ratings periods, but all year long.

When these principles are diligently applied, it leads to two additional Ps: Performance and Profits.

Like so many other Americans, Harry J. Pappas and his brothers built successful broadcast careers based on a belief in the American dream. Like all immigrant parents, theirs greatly desired a better life for their children. The ethic of dreaming big, working hard, creating and achieving was taken to heart by these men and their sister.

Over the course of nearly forty years of hard work, Harry, indeed, had lived his life as the "A number one" person his father expected him to be. Along the way, he had built the largest privately-owned commercial TV station group in America by serving his audiences first. Or as Harry puts it, "Ours is a group of 'A number one' people who create 'A number one' stations."

In early 2008, Harry J. Pappas began a journey that ultimately led to his full retirement from the broadcast business, and he was able to more fully enjoy the remainder of his life with his beloved wife, Stella, and their two beautiful children.