General Information on AROY
American Romanian Orthodox Youth

The American-Romanian Orthodox Youth (AROY) is the official youth auxiliary of the Orthodox Church in America's Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America. AROY is comprised of every young person living under the canonical jurisdiction of the Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America (ROEA), and includes many incorporated chapters. In a very real sense, AROY is not some exclusive "Club;" instead, the young people of The Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America are the "American Romanian Orthodox Youth," working together under the blessing of their Archbishop, with the support of their parishes and the prayers of their families. "AROY" is more of a description than an organizational name.

Founded in 1950, AROY was one of the first Orthodox youth organizations to be incorporated in the United States and Canada, pioneering the way for many of the groups found in other jurisdictions today. AROY hosts several national programs each year including:

• A quarterly AROY newsletter to showcase the activities of the organization and its local chapters while educating the readers in our Orthodox Christian Faith.

• An Annual Conference during Labor Day Weekend, including a special Cotillion (debutante ball),

• Fellowship and sports activities each year such as 2 sports tournaments (a spring basketball/volleyball tournament and a fall soccer/football sports tournaments)

• National service projects to raise money to assist the Episcopate, and

• A national weekend retreat .

AROY is administered by an Executive Board composed of veteran members from various chapters, as well as the Archbishop and the Spiritual Advisor , which meets twice a year. The work of the AROY is carried out during the year by various committees of the National Board. Over the years, various committees have been established to meet the needs of the organization and complete the projects initiated by the AROY Conference and National Board. The current president is Miss Oliviana Grama, of Cleveland, Ohio, and daughter of Fr. Remus and Psa. Elena Grama. On the local level, AROY chapters become involved in many activities: fund-raisers, mission trips, service projects, spiritual retreats, and fellowship events.

For more information on AROY visit their website at http://www.aroy.org .