Helen De Ponte (née Dionyssiou)
Interviewer(s):
Theo Xenophontos
Project:
Film as Mediator: Cultivating a Cypriot Canadian Community Audiovisual Media Archive
INTERVIEW LOCATION:
Toronto, ON
LANGUAGE:
English
DATE:
August 29, 2023

Interview Summary:

Helen De Ponte was born in Nicosia, Cyprus in 1970. In 1974, she migrated to Canada with her parents following the Turkish invasion. Until the invasion forced her family to flee Cyprus, her father worked at the famous Ledra Palace Hotel.

Date and Location
August 29, 2023
Toronto, ON
Interviewee(s)
Helen De Ponte (née Dionyssiou)
Interviewer(s)
Theo Xenophontos
Languages
English
Reference ID
FAMREF018
Project
Film as Mediator: Cultivating a Cypriot Canadian Community Audiovisual Media Archive
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Categories
Tags
Decades Referenced
Locations Referenced
Cyprus; Kyperounda (Limassol District); the Ledra Palace Hotel; the UN Buffer Zone; Nicosia; Nicosia International Airport; Varosha (Famagusta District); Famagusta; Kyrenia; Limassol; Canada; Toronto; Cypriot Community Centre (Thorncliffe); Danforth; Scarborough; Lansdowne; Keswick; Azores; Portugal; Australia; the United Kingdom; Italy
Occupation(s)
Parents Occupation(s)
Her mother worked as a nanny in Cyprus. Her father worked as a bartender at the Ledra Palace Hotel and also worked as a bartender in Canada.
Names Referenced
Anna Ellinas; Costa-Gavras; Helen Power (née Xenophontos); Makarios III; Nitsa Benkovic (née Pingos); Stella Partheniou Grasso; Theodoros Xenophontos

[00:00:18] Memories of Cyprus and family stories

[00:11:26] Migrating to Canada due to the 1974 invasion

[00:14:50] Family divided between Cyprus and Canada

[00:16:00] Growing up in Toronto and the need for adjustment

[00:18:08] Assimilation and maintaining Cypriot culture

[00:23:25] Differences between Cypriot and Greek language

[00:29:49] Relations between Cypriots and Turks

[00:36:25] Keeping in touch with the news in Cyprus

[00:40:02] Multiculturalism in Cyprus

[00:41:10] Cypriot communities in Canada; Cypriot festival

[00:41:52] Infusing Cypriot identity into her daughter's life

[00:45:50] Communication with her family back in Cyprus

[00:46:57] Taking pictures and videos of events

[00:47:52] How audiovisual media helps us remember the past

[00:50:10] Identifying as a Cypriot Canadian

[00:54:20] Hopes for a unified Cyprus

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Helen's mother, 1967
The writing on the back of the previous photo, 1967
Helen's parents, 1967
Helen's parents wedding photo, October 5, 1968
Helen's parents wedding photo, October 5, 1968
The back of Helen's parents wedding photo, October 5, 1968
Helen's pappou and aunt in Kyperounda, 1978
Helen's parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins having a picnic in Canada, 1978
Helen's mother (in the centre of the middle row) with her parents, sisters,  one of her brothers, and son, late 1980s
Helen with her aunt and uncle (fellow interviewee, Theodoros Xenophontos), 1990
Helen (in the blue sweatshirt) with her cousins and siblings on Christmas Day, 1991
Helen's aunt, yiayia, and pappou in Cyprus, September 29, 1992
Helen's mother (seated in the coloured shirt) with her brothers and two of her sisters, July 21, 1996
Helen's mother with her parents, brothers, and two of her sisters, July 21, 1996
Helen's sister (with the microphone) in the Cypriot dance group, late 1990s. York University Libraries, ASC61632
Helen's sister (on the left)  in the Cypriot dance group, late 1990s. York University Libraries, ASC61629
Helen's sister (in the centre of the background) in the Cypriot dance group, late 1990s. York University Libraries, ASC61630
Helen's sister (in the background, toward the left)  in the Cypriot dance group, late 1990s. York University Libraries, ASC61633
Helen's younger cousins in Cyprus before a wedding, August 23, 1997
Helen's cousin (on the left) getting married, August 23, 1997
Helen's cousin and wife adorned with money at their wedding, August 23, 1997
The traditional raising of the bed at Helen's cousin's wedding, August, 23, 1997
Helen's yiayia and pappou outside their home in Kyperounda, 1998
Helen's ancestral village of Kyperounda, April 22, 1998
Helen with her goddaughter, 1998
No items found.
Helen's mother, 1967
The writing on the back of the previous photo, 1967
Helen's parents, 1967
Helen's parents wedding photo, October 5, 1968
Helen's parents wedding photo, October 5, 1968
The back of Helen's parents wedding photo, October 5, 1968
Helen's pappou and aunt in Kyperounda, 1978
Helen's parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins having a picnic in Canada, 1978
Helen's mother (in the centre of the middle row) with her parents, sisters,  one of her brothers, and son, late 1980s
Helen with her aunt and uncle (fellow interviewee, Theodoros Xenophontos), 1990
Helen (in the blue sweatshirt) with her cousins and siblings on Christmas Day, 1991
Helen's aunt, yiayia, and pappou in Cyprus, September 29, 1992
Helen's mother (seated in the coloured shirt) with her brothers and two of her sisters, July 21, 1996
Helen's mother with her parents, brothers, and two of her sisters, July 21, 1996
Helen's sister (with the microphone) in the Cypriot dance group, late 1990s. York University Libraries, ASC61632
Helen's sister (on the left)  in the Cypriot dance group, late 1990s. York University Libraries, ASC61629
Helen's sister (in the centre of the background) in the Cypriot dance group, late 1990s. York University Libraries, ASC61630
Helen's sister (in the background, toward the left)  in the Cypriot dance group, late 1990s. York University Libraries, ASC61633
Helen's younger cousins in Cyprus before a wedding, August 23, 1997
Helen's cousin (on the left) getting married, August 23, 1997
Helen's cousin and wife adorned with money at their wedding, August 23, 1997
The traditional raising of the bed at Helen's cousin's wedding, August, 23, 1997
Helen's yiayia and pappou outside their home in Kyperounda, 1998
Helen's ancestral village of Kyperounda, April 22, 1998
Helen with her goddaughter, 1998
No items found.