Mrs. Sylvia Nercessian; an adorable, warmhearted, caring, thoughtful, loving, modest, respectful, decent, and courageous woman, wife, mother and grandmother. A helping hand. A beautiful soul. A true Christian. 

A descendant of Armenian Genocide Survivors, Mrs. Sylvia was born and raised in Lebanon in a Christian, God-fearing Armenian family. She was always surrounded with love and respect, qualities which she transferred to her own family afterwards. She studied Pharmacy at the American University of Beirut and after obtaining her degree she opened her own pharmacy. Meanwhile, she was always active in church, leading the Sunday school and teaching the Bible at the school she graduated from, the Armenian Evangelical College of the 1st Evangelical Church in Beirut. 

God blessed her with an amazing family: a caring husband, Mr. John Nercessian, and two sons, Andy and Shant. In 1979, because of the war in Lebanon, they all migrated to Greece in search of a safer and better life; but of course, she never ever forgot the place she was born and raised in and her dear ones who still lived there. 

After arriving in Greece, in search of a new church to call home, Mrs. Nercessian immediately found the Armenian Evangelical Church in Athens and began to serve once again. She dedicated herself to the church and the Armenian community. Soon, she was elected as the chairperson of the Women's Auxiliary and later on she also became a deaconess. 

As a deaconess, until this day, she leads the church service every time the pastor of the church is away. In addition, she used to visit the elderly home that belonged to the Armenian Apostolic and Evangelical Churches and bring them joy with her heartfelt prayers, her touching sermons and generous gifts. As the chairperson of the Women's Auxiliary, she was the first to organize bazaars and charity events to support the poor and the needy, no matter their nationality. She has always been ready to lend a helping hand and embrace the homeless, refugees, or migrants by distributing food, clothes, and other necessities. Dear to the Armenian community in Greece and always sensitive to Armenian issues, she has helped and donated money to the Armenian schools and kindergartens and provided Armenian migrants with some essentials and/or offered them jobs. The words "No" or "No, I can't" seem to not exist in her vocabulary. She always smiles and says "If it's God's will, we can do it."

Mrs. Sylvia became involved in WWDP in 1982 and in 2000 she was elected as the chairperson of the Greek National Committee. Since then, her hope and vision for an ecumenical church made her more determined to make people aware of WWDP and its purposes. She has also translated the WWDP programs into Armenian. She has encountered many obstacles along the way, and at times even been rejected. Throughout the journey, however, she has never given up her vision and has carried her bright and sincere smile. Over the past few years, she has been able to gather more than 200 women on Women's World Day of Prayer, which is a significant achievement for Greece. 

Today, she still serves God with love, patience, and great joy. She has been a great person to rely on and her house and her heart have always been open for others as a place of refuge. She is loved and respected by everyone because she does everything wholeheartedly, selflessly, and lovingly. 

Mrs. Sylvia Nercessian; a tireless woman. 

- Honored by Sona Galstyan, WDP Greece