Dino Sophocleous (Interview 2) | Oral History Archive | HHFGCA

Dino Sophocleous (Interview 2)

Interviewer(s):

Theo Xenophontos

Project:

Greek Canadian Stories

INTERVIEW LOCATION:

Regina, SK (Zoom)

LANGUAGE:

English

DATE:

August 24, 2026

Interview Summary:

Dino Sophocleous was born in Nicosia, Cyprus in 1963 and migrated to Canada in 1983. At different points since the 1990s, Dino served as the President of the Canadian wing of PSEKA, President of the Hellenic Canadian Federation of Ontario, Vice President of the Cypriot Community of Toronto, represented the Cypriot Federation of Canada at the Canadian Ethnocultural Council, and sat on the board of the Hellenic Canadian Congress. In this interview, he details how he lobbied on behalf of the Cyprus issue, the Macedonia naming dispute, and against Turkish aggression in the Aegean. He also provides insights into both the formation of the Cypriot state and the contemporary geopolitical landscape. Dino also discusses the role his father Neophytos Sophocleous played in the EOKA struggle and how Neophytos was consulted by General Grivas before the creation of EOKA-B. Living in Saskatchewan in recent years, Dino concludes by talking about the twin Greek communities in Regina and Saskatoon.

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Date and Location

August 24, 2026

Regina, SK (Zoom)

Interviewee(s)

Dino Sophocleous (Interview 2)

Interviewer(s)

Theo Xenophontos

Languages

English

Reference ID

GICREF173B

Project

Greek Canadian Stories

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Categories

Associational Life

Canadian Society

Culture and Tradition

Historical Events

Homeland Activism

Migration

Tags

Canadian Politics

Cypriot Canadian Identity

Cypriot Community of Toronto Inc.

Cypriot Federation Of Canada

Cyprus 1974

Cyprus Coup

EOKA

EOKA-B

Greek Community

Greek Civil War

Language

Macedonia Naming Dispute

Post-1974 Migration

Pre-1974 Migration

PSEKA

Decades Referenced

1940s

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Locations Referenced

Cyprus; Kykkos Monastery; Kyrenia; Liopetri (Famagusta District); Marathasa; Pegeia (Paphos District); Paphos; Canada; Calgary; Cypriana (restaurant and music venue in Scarborough); Cypriot Community Centre (Thorncliffe); Halifax; Keswick; Kitchener; Mississauga; Oshawa; Ottawa; Regina; Saskatoon; Scarborough; St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church (Scarborough); Toronto; York University; Greece; Arcadia; Peloponnese; Thessaloniki; Turkey; Istanbul; the United Kingdom; London; France; Germany; Israel; Seychelles; the United States of America

Occupation(s)

President and CEO of Hospitals of Regina Foundation. Formerly a chartered accountant for Grant Thornton

Parents Occupation(s)

Father: police officer

Names Referenced

Anna Ellinas; Athina Charalambides; Chris Erodotou; Costas Menegakis; Criton G. Tornaritis; Dimitris Mantalas; George Makriyiannis; Jim Karygiannis; John Cannis; John Georgiou; Georgios Grivas; Kofi Annan; Makarios III; Neophytos Sophocleous; Ourania Kokkinou; Philip Christopher; Polycarpos Giorkatzis; Rauf Denktaş Recep Tayyip Erdogan; Solomos Solomou; Tassos Isaac; Tony Clement; Xanthos Charalambous

[00:00:00] His father’s role in EOKA and views on EOKA-B

[00:16:09] Involvement with Hellenic Canadian organizations

[00:21:40] The Canadian Ethnocultural Council

[00:25:57] Layers of assimilation

[00:37:37] Greek Canadian society and the Macedonian issue

[00:42:58] Tassos Isaac and Greek Canadian politicians

[00:47:34] The left and right divide in the diaspora [

01:03:07] Cypriana and PSEKA

[01:17:24] Turkey’s Blue Homeland doctrine

[01:32:09] The failure of the Annan Plan

[01:36:51] His opinion on the British bases

[01:41:59] Growing French and US military presence in Cyprus

[01:43:43] Discussing potential solutions to the Cyprus issue

[1:54:50] The Greek community in Saskatchewan

[01:59:09] Protesting Denktaş’ visit to Toronto

[02:00:43] Cypriots beyond Toronto and his final statement

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