The 63-year-old Los Angeles resident, who is Japanese-American, fell in love with the culture when some of his Navy buddies invited him to go Greek dancing when they were stationed in San Diego in 1966.
Okada began taking Greek dancing lessons in 1968, taught some of his own dance classes, later met his ex-wife in a Greek language class, had a Greek wedding and took her to Greece for their honeymoon.
And for more than 20 years, Okada never missed a single Valley Greek Festival, which on Saturday kicked off its 38th annual celebration, marking it as one of the longest-running events in the San Fernando Valley.

\"I\'ll never miss a festival,\" said Okada, while taking a break from line dancing on the grounds of the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Northridge. \"I love the music and I come right when it opens and have the lamb souvlaki. This is part of my life.\"

The three-day festival saw attendance drop to about 30,000 last year because of rain, said Bill Alagolu, co-chair of the festival. But with the long weekend\'s forecast of temperatures in the 80s and 90s, organizers were expecting about 50,000 guests.
\"It\'s going gangbusters out there,\" Alagolu said. \"It\'ll be nice for people coming home from the beach Monday.\"
Thousands had already gathered in the opening hours on Saturday despite the hot sun beating down on festival grounds. Folkdancing exhibitions by grade school children elicited cheers and clapping from the crowd.
Unable to resist the twang of the bouzouki - lute-like instruments played by the band Olympians - adults formed their own impromptu dance lines, linking hands and stepping and kicking in tune to the music. Several young cooks grilling chicken and beef souvlaki couldn\'t help but form their own line dance just feet away from a sizzling grill.

\"What\'s amazing to see is so many people from all walks of life and all different ethnicities come out,\" said Despina Perros Barrett, a member of the church who won the grand-prize trip to Greece in last year\'s raffle.

\"And whether they know what they\'re doing or not, it\'s OK because someone will just grab you by the arm and you get entwined in the circle.\"
Barrett, a teacher at Kester Avenue Elementary School in Sherman Oaks, said the festival showcased a sense of pride.
\"It comes from the heart and soul,\" she said as she watched her 3-year-old daughter twirl gleefully to the music. \"If we can\'t get to Greece every year, this is the closest thing.\"

The festival\'s nine food booths featuring Mediterranean cuisine such as calamari, dolmathes, gyros, moussaka and loucanico did brisk business.
Trays of 14 varieties of pastries lined one booth - showcasing baklavas and revani, a cake soaked with syrup - that drew masses of sweet-toothed festival-goers.

\"It\'s orgasmic,\" said Victor Vasquez, of Tarzana, as he savored a galatobouriko, a filo dough and custard creation.

Volunteers who were frying loucoumathes, also known as Greek doughnut holes drizzled with honey and cinnamon, estimated that they would make well over 10,000 of the pastries each day.
\"I think there\'s something good for everyone,\" said volunteer Alex Saroukos, of Northridge, who was laboring over the deep fryer in the sun. \"Especially to celebrate Memorial Day weekend with great food and music.\"

Want to go?
The Valley Greek Festival continues today and Monday from 1 to 9 p.m. at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, 9501 Balboa Blvd., Northridge. For more information, call 818-886-4040 or go to valleygreekfestival.com.