May 19 is the official remembrance day of the Pontian Genocide.

Illinois State Representative Sandra M. Pihos is of Pontian Greek descent. A native of Canton, Ohio, she represents Illinois legislative district #42. In an interview this past March with The Greek Star newspaper, she spoke about her pride in her Hellenism, as well as her Pontian roots and how she has worked to bring the issue to the masses.

Last year she sponsored a bill to amend the school code. Schools are required to teach genocide, and receive a list of genocides to select for lessons. The bill would add the Pontian Greek Genocide to that list. The resolution was re-referred to the Rules Committee for further review. “It’s a difficult issue; we’re going to re-introduce it as a resolution, and then when the climate changes, we can bring the proposed legislation back to the table, and be successful,” Pihos explained. These issues are important to bring forth at the state level, as “we take the resolutions and forward them to the US Congressional delegation, to make sure Congress knows that the people of the State of Illinois want them to be on a certain side of an issue. They need to know where Illinoisans stand, so they may act accordingly.”

In 2007, Pihos co-sponsored and led another resolution to adoption; it urged Turkey to “uphold and safeguard religious and human rights without compromise, cease discrimination of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, grant the Ecumenical Patriarchate appropriate international recognition, ecclesiastic succession, the right to train clergy of all nationalities, and to respect the property rights and human rights of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.”

Mrs. Pihos is a member of the Hellenic Interparliamentary Association. This is a group sponsored by Greece, consisting of 225 legislators or parliamentarians from all over the world. Members trace their Greek roots to at least a grandparent. They gather in Athens every other year, to brainstorm, network, and keep the culture and history of Greece alive in their respective countries. “We address many important issues, such as FYROM, the Parthenon Marbles. We agree to an outcome on certain issues and how we can work toward them. We’re all instrumental in our states to help people understand tradition, ethnicity, and to keep the Greek language alive. It’s something we are all very committed to.”

Pihos is a longtime member of Holy Apostles Church in Westchester, Ill., where she has been an active member of the Philoptochos since 1968 and sine 1989, has directed the Holy Apostles Christmas pageant.

She is active in many organizations in the State of Illinois.

State Rep. Pihos serves on many House committees, including: Elementary and Secondary Education; Registration and Regulation; Appropriations-Elementary & Secondary Education; Consumer Protection; Aging (Republican Spokesperson); Elementary & Secondary Education; Public Policy & Accountability; Disability Services; Homeland Security & Emergency Preparation (Republican Spokesperson) and Charter Schools.

To learn more about Rep. Pihos, visit http://sandrapihos.com.

(Portions The Greek Star article used with permission. ©2010. http://thegreekstar.com)