Vassilis C. Constantakopoulos
 | This article's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia. (April 2012) |
Vassilis C. Constantakopoulos | |
|---|---|
 Vassilis Constantakopoulos in 2010 | |
| Born | Vassilis C. Constantakopoulos 29 June 1935 Diavolitsi, Messinia |
| Died | 25 January 2011 (aged 75) |
| Nationality |  Greek |
| Occupation | Captain, Shipowner |
| Spouse(s) | Carmen Kiritsi |
| Children | Konstantinos Achilleas Christos |
Vassilis C. Constantakopoulos (Greek: Βασίλειος Κωνσταντακόπουλος Vassilis Constantakopoulos, 29 June 1935 - 25 January 2011) was a Greek Captain, Shipowner and Entrepreneur.
Personal life[]
"Captain Vassilis", as he was widely known, was born in 1935 in the village of Diavolitsi, in Messinia, southwest Peloponnese. After growing up in Messinia, he went to sea, gradually working his way up to master. When he came ashore in 1974 after 21 years, he established Costamare Shipping Company, which quickly expanded and today is one of the world’s largest container shipping owners/operators, with 58 ships.
Captain Vassilis was married to Carmen Kiritsi in 1964. They had 3 sons and 7 grandchildren.[1]
Career[]
Apart from shipping, he was involved in other business activities. Constantakopoulos also became involved in the tourism industry, and was the founder and president of TEMES S.A., developers of the new destination in his homeland Messinia.
He was also the founder and president of Geohellas, an industrial minerals company involved in the mining, processing and marketing of industrial minerals from deposits in the Greek prefectures of Grevena and Kozani.[2]
Costamare[]
Today Costamare manages 58 ships and is a leading international owner of containerships, aggregating approximately 330,000 TEU, including 10 newbuild containerships on order and one second hand vessel to be delivered, ranging from about 1,000 TEUs to about 9,500 TEUs capacity. In 2006, Costamare celebrated 32 years in the maritime business, employing about 2.000 people [3]
[]
Costa Navarino, the prime sustainable destination in the Mediterranean, located in the Greek region of Messinia in the southwest Peloponnese, was the dream of captain, entrepreneur and ship-owner Vassilis ‘Captain Vassilis’ Constantakopoulos who always wanted to preserve, promote and give back to his homeland.[4]
His life's work was to revitalise one of Greece's most depressed regions with international luxury ecotourism.[5] Costa Navarino, one of the most unspoiled and breathtaking seaside Mediterranean landscapes, is therefore a bold project to achieve this end: to offer luxurious yet sustainable options for people the world over to come and discover the unspoiled beauty of Captain Vassilis’ homeland while immersing themselves in the history of the region and offering employment opportunities to the local community.
Environment[]
Captain Vassilis become involved in the environmental movement in the early 1980s. He was co-founder of HELMEPA (Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association). HELMEPA was founded in 1982 by Greek Shipowners and Greek Seafarers with the aim of promoting the protection of the sea environment. He was also a founding member of HELMEPA Junior and chaired both organizations.
HELMEPA Junior trains young people to act as the courier of environmental messages whilst also bringing the children closer to shipping and to show them potential future career options. Since 1993, more than 45,000 children aged 6 to 13 years old, and 1,800 teachers, have participated all over Greece. In 1998 HELMEPA Junior was awarded the UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) Global 500 prize.[6][7]
Charity and awards[]
Constantakopoulos was a benefactor to several causes in Greece and other countries. In 2000, Constantakopoulos and his wife founded the Hellenic Studies Centre at the University of Beijing.
Constantakopoulos served on the Boards of Directors of numerous Greek and international organizations in the maritime and other fields and received awards from the Academy of Athens, the European Union and several cities and chambers for his activities.[8]
Death[]
Captain Vassilis Constantakopoulos died on January 25, 2011, at the age of 76.[9]
References[]
- ^ Efoplistes Who is Who
- ^ Kathimerini Greek Daily Newspaper
- ^ Costamare official site
- ^ "The Ultimate Guide to Costa Navarino, Greece".
- ^ "Grand ambitions: Ecoluxury in Greece". 19 March 2011.
- ^ Hellenic Shipping News
- ^ HELMEPA The Board of Directors
- ^ Athens News Greek- English Newspaper
- ^ Athens News Agency
External links[]
- 1935 births
- 2011 deaths
- Greek environmentalists
- Greek philanthropists
- Greek businesspeople in shipping
- People from Messenia
- 20th-century philanthropists