Greek family finds a home locally with The Schooner; their story is part of the next cultural heritage showcase
Published at 12:24 a.m. on Wednesday October 11, 2023
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Constantine and Antonia Megas at the Schooner, 2017. (Archive photo)
The first photograph ever taken by Constantine Megas. The photo was sent to his Uncle Eugene to recognize him upon his arrival in Texas. He was 14 years old in the photo. (Courtesy photo)
Antonia Megas in her high school uniform in Greece. (Courtesy photo)
Constantine and Antonia Megas at their wedding. (Courtesy photo)
Constantine and Antonia Megas after Antonia’s arrival in America. Photo taken in front of St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Port Arthur. (Courtesy photo)
For Greek immigrants Constantine and Antonia Megas, Southeast Texas is home.
The Megas family is known as owners of the Schooner in the Netherlands and as proud Americans.
Antonia Megas is looking forward to participating in the upcoming Cultural Heritage Showcase, scheduled for 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Bow Bowers Civic Center in Port Arthur.
The Greater Port Arthur Chamber of Commerce is leading the City of Port Arthur’s 125th anniversary celebrations.
“This is our home,” Antonia Megas said. “I have been here for 53 years, my husband for 70 years. We raised our family here. We love to go back and visit, but it’s our home.
The Megas family’s journey to the region began with Constantine’s uncle Eugene, who owned The Schooner with his wife Antigone. Constantin left Greece in 1951, at the age of 15, and arrived in the region, where he attended school and worked in the family restaurant, according to family information.
A few years later, he moved to California and worked with a family that owned several restaurants, honing his skills in the trade and learning how to properly cut steaks, fillet fish and prepare sauces.
He returned to Texas in 1968 and purchased The Schooner from his aunt after his uncle died.
Antonia is also from Greece. She attended school and helped her family grow crops. She was active in the Greek Orthodox Church in her village and was apprenticed to a local seamstress.
“Both Constantine and Antonia are from Tripolis, located in the Peloponnese region of Greece. It’s about a two-hour drive from Athens,” daughter Maria Megas told Port Arthur Newsmedia.
Her parents, she said, had an equal marriage, so to speak.
Constantine returned to Greece in the summer of 1970 and came to meet Antonia at an arranged meeting. The two immediately liked each other and later got married.
Over the years, they raised six children and operated a successful restaurant in a city for which they are grateful.
