The first large family to answer a teacher’s call to repopulate the dwindling mountain village of Fourna in central Greece has decided to move to the island of Naxos, citing economic pressures and the need for extended family support.
Stefanos and Vasiliki, along with their six children, arrived in Fourna two years ago after teacher Panagiota Diamanti and village priest Konstantinos Dousikos launched an online appeal for families to settle in the village to keep its school from closing.
The couple opened a small shop with support from residents and a €14,000 state grant for female entrepreneurship.
But running the business alone proved financially unsustainable.
“When they both worked exclusively in their own store, it ultimately made things harder economically,” Ms. Diamanti said.
The family also faced high childcare costs and limited professional flexibility in the remote Evrytania region.
They will now relocate to Stefanos’s family home in Naxos, eliminating rent and gaining daily help from his parents with the children.
“This allows both parents to work in different sectors, which is more manageable financially than relying solely on their own shop,” Ms. Diamanti said.
During their stay, the family received significant community support: a year of free rent, electrical equipment from a major retailer, and donations of stoves, tables and other essentials from villagers.
Ms. Diamanti stressed that families who move to rural areas are not bound to stay indefinitely. “They have the right to decide what is best for their family depending on conditions and their work,” she said.
“Leaving Fourna doesn’t mean abandoning rural life — they’re still moving to the countryside, just where they have a home and grandparents to help.
The couple’s departure marks the end of a chapter that inspired five other families to settle in Fourna.
Ms. Diamanti said about 80 families remain on a waiting list to relocate to villages across Greece through similar initiatives.In a social media post, Vasiliki wrote: “Fourna will remain a part of our lives… We tried, we gave what we could.”
By Vassilis Goulas