AHEPA Bergen Knights · Chapter 285
From the first Americans of Hellenic descent building a community across Bergen and Passaic counties to generations of service thereafter, the “Brother Knights” of AHEPA Bergen Knights Chapter 285 have carried a shared purpose forward.
Our Beginning
The Bergen Knights trace their beginnings to the Knights of Saint George, organized by Americans of Hellenic descent in the Bergen and Passaic area around 1918–1920. Their work helped establish a Hellenic Orthodox community in 1921. Some of those same men later joined AHEPA, laying the groundwork for a chapter of their own.
On August 27, 1931, AHEPA Bergen Knights Chapter 285 was founded in Hackensack, New Jersey, with Theodore C. Kiscaras as its first president. Even through the Great Depression, members helped build places for worship and learning, including Saint George Greek Orthodox Church in Passaic and a community Greek school in Hackensack.
During World War II, the chapter organized Greek War Relief efforts and supported American war bond and charitable drives. In the decades that followed, Brother Knights continued supporting local parishes, education, scholarships, cancer research, and neighbors in need. That commitment to fellowship and service carries the chapter’s founding purpose into the present.
Across generations, the Brother Knights have strengthened bonds of friendship, supported Hellenic education and local parishes, and answered calls to help students, veterans, cancer research, and neighbors in need. Each generation builds on the work of those before it, carrying the chapter’s purpose forward today.
Brotherhood. Purpose. Service. Legacy.
Explore the full story of AHEPA Bergen Knights Chapter 285, beginning with the Knights of Saint George and the founding of the chapter in Hackensack in 1931. The archive brings together founding records, early member and officer rosters, newspaper accounts, photographs, and documents that trace the chapter’s work through the Great Depression and World War II. It also follows the Brother Knights’ support for Greek Orthodox parishes, Hellenic education, scholarships, charitable causes, and community gatherings across the generations. These original materials offer a closer look at the people and events behind the chapter’s continuing legacy.
Go deeper
Digital archive · AHEPA History
Browse digitized AHEPA magazines, chapter histories, biographies, historical books, and other materials preserving the story of the Order of AHEPA and its members. The archive also includes the full history of Bergen Knights Chapter 285.
Book · 1972
George J. Leber’s The History of the Order of AHEPA (1922–1972) was published by the fraternity to commemorate its Golden Anniversary. It recognizes AHEPA’s early pioneers and their dedication to the fraternity’s mission and principles.
The book represents Brother Leber’s years of research and writing—a labor of love that preserves the organization’s first fifty years.
Article · The Pappas Post
By Gregory Pappas (PappasPost.com). This article republishes a story by James S. Scofield that appeared in newspapers during AHEPA’s 75th anniversary in 1997. It recalls the discrimination and intimidation Greek immigrants faced in North America and the circumstances surrounding AHEPA’s founding.