Public Benefit Work

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John S. Latsis’ entrepreneurial activities were accompanied by notable public benefit work, which was from the beginning inspired by moral principles, social values and humanitarian priorities.

The manner in which his public benefit initiatives were performed depended on the circumstances. For activities where the needs were incessant, and coordination and oversight were necessary conditions, he created Foundations to administer the funds he bestowed. The first was the John S. Latsis Ileians΄ Scholarships Foundation, which was set up in 1967 and operates to this day, having funded the education of 1,800 undergraduate and postgraduate students. A few years later, in 1975, John S. Latsis established the Fondation Latsis Internationale, a non-profit public benefit foundation based in Geneva, Switzerland, which annually awards prizes to scientists or research groups in recognition of their outstanding and innovative contributions in selected scientific fields. This was followed by the Foundation for the Rehabilitation of Albanians of Greek Descent which, since its establishment in 1991 until today, has lodged and educated more than 1,000 Albanians of Greek descent, and contributed decisively to improving their living conditions and to their entry into the job market.

John S. Latsis΄ sense of social responsibility was triggered whenever Greece was in a state of emergency. He provided substantial financial support during the earthquakes that struck the Kalamata area in 1986, lodging over 1,000 earthquake victims on his cruise ship for two years and donating a factory manufacturing pre-fabricated houses to the Greek government. He also offered his assistance during the earthquakes that struck his homeland of Pyrgos, Ileia in 1988 and 1993, Grevena in 1995, and Athens in 1999.

On many occasions, the public benefit work of John S. Latsis took the form of  donations to cover certain specific needs, whether of Greece or of other countries. It was in the 1980s that he made his most important contributions to the Greek state, by offering operational and functional equipment to the Greek Fire Department, the Hellenic Police, and the Ministry of Public Order. He had a particular empathy for Greek sailors and their families, and this was expressed with donations to support the Mariners’ Retirement Fund and the Panhellenic Marine Federation in the same decade.

The public benefit activities of John S. Latsis were linked to important works that bear his name. Specifically, in 1995, the administration of the Athens College was granted the Latsio Elementary School building complex, which covers a total of 10,000 sq.m. and was fully financed by John S. Latsis.  In 1999, a donation contract was signed, granting the Greek State the Latsio Burn Centre, a hospital specialising in the care of burn victims. This unit was handed over to the Greek State, fully equipped, in 2005, two years after the death of John S. Latsis. Among the important buildings bearing his name, one should also mention the Latsio City Hall Building, which he donated to his homeland of Pyrgos, Ileia.

The humanitarian contribution of John S. Latsis extends beyond the above, to a multitude of spontaneous gestures of solidarity to fellow human beings in need. He received many honours for his philanthropic activities, amongst them the Mount Athos Millennial Gold Cross awarded by the Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras in 1963, the Grand Cross of the Order of the Phoenix by King Paul in 1965, the Order of the Grand Commander by the Patriarch of Antioch in 1976, the Academy of Athens Award in 1989 and the Gold Cross from the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in 1995.