HELLENIC TIMES SCHOLARSHIP FUND TO HOST MASQUERADE BALL

HONORING ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT'S MARIA MENOUNOS, CSI: MIAMI & SOPRANOS STAR SOFIA MILOS, ATLANTIC BANK CHAIRMAN THOMAS O'BRIEN, AND FEATURING A CONCERT APPEARANCE BY POP GROUP "ONE."

NEW YORK: The Hellenic Times Scholarship Fund will honor Entertainment Tonight's Maria Menounos, Sofia Milos, star of the hit television shows "CSI: Miami," and "The Sopranos," and Thomas O'Brien, Chairman & CEO of Atlantic Bank at the Annual HTSF Gala at the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel on Saturday, May 8, 2004.

The HTSF is also pleased to welcome pop group "ONE" who will be traveling from Greece to perform at the Gala.

The theme of this year's Gala is "The Masquerade Ball." Guests are welcome to bring their own masks, but masks will be provided at the Gala as well. Over 1200 guests are expected to attend and returning as scholarship presenters this year will be many past honorees as $100,000 in scholarships will be awarded to students from across the United States. The event will also feature a Festival of Gems display where guests may purchase jewelry in every shape and color.

Honoree - Maria Menounos

The HTSF is proud to present its Journalistic Achievement Humanitarian Award to Entertainment Tonight correspondent Maria Menounos. Since joining ET in the 2001-02 season, Menounos' duties have included reporting on film, television, music and fashion for the #1 syndicated entertainment newsmagazine in the world. Most recently, Menounos served as host of the Academy Awards' arrivals show "Oscar Countdown 2004." She also serves as host of ET on MTV, one of the highest rated shows on the cable network, as well as ET on VH1, and she has appeared on the CBS drama "Without A Trace." Previously, Ms. Menounos was an international correspondent for Channel One News, the #1 source of news for America's teen students. As a journalist for their 10-minute weekday broadcasts, she reported on a variety of timely and topical issues to more than eight million students. During her tenure, she interviewed President George W. Bush, numerous celebrities, and traveled the world to cover such tragedies as the 2001 earthquake in El Salvador and the AIDS epidemic in South Africa. Ms. Menounos began her career with Channel One during her senior year at Emerson College in Boston. During this time she also wrote, produced and broadcast news segments for WERS-FM, one of the largest college radio stations in the country. In addition, she co-hosted and produced a weekly radio talk show on Boston's WNRB-AM. Her experiences as a journalist have compelled Ms. Menounos to spend time off-camera on philanthropic and social issues close to her heart. After witnessing the devastating effects of AIDS in South Africa as a Channel One reporter, she formed Take Action Hollywood!, a charity whose mission is to utilize the power of the entertainment industry and the production medium to educate, empower and raise social awareness.

Honoree - Sofia Milos

The HTSF is proud to present its Artistic Achievement Humanitarian Award to Sofia Milos who currently stars opposite David Caruso on the hit CBS drama CSI: Miami as detective Yelina Salas. Born in Zurich, Switzerland, Milos began a modeling career at the age of 15, which helped pay her way through Business and Economics school in Switzerland. In the years to come her fashion career took her around the world and in 1990 she followed her acting dream to Los Angeles where she landed her first film role, Inside Out, co-starring Lesley Anne Down and Kris Kristofferson. In 1993 she landed a part in the Valerie Bertinelli sitcom Café Americain, which paved the way to a series of television appearances on Friends, Mad About You, Thieves with John Stamos and Curb Your Enthusiasm. In 1997, Sofia was cast in one of her most memorable roles as Julia Karinsky in the NBC series Caroline in the City. As the sexy, passionate and wealthy Italian wife of Richard, she was uproariously funny. In 1998, she appeared as the young Olympia Dukakis in Jane Austen's Mafia! But the role that garnered her the most attention was that of mob boss, Annalisa Zucca, on the HBO series The Sopranos, in which she went up against Tony Soprano. Milos has also lit up the silver screen with many films including The Order with Jean Claude Van Damme, and Passionada, a romantic comedy, which garnered her rave reviews.

Honoree - Thomas O'Brien

The HTSF is also proud to present its Corporate Leadership Humanitarian Award to Mr. Thomas O'Brien, Chairman and CEO of Atlantic Bank. O'Brien joined Atlantic Bank in May of 2000 from North Fork Bank where he served as Vice Chairman since 1996. Prior to that, he was Chairman, President and CEO of North Side Savings Bank, a position he held for 13 years. Established in 1926, Atlantic Bank of New York is among the top 20 commercial banks in the New York area. With $3.0 billion in assets, Atlantic Bank is a full-service commercial bank with branch offices throughout the metropolitan New York City region, and Boston. Atlantic Bank is also a member of the global-financial network of the National Bank of Greece, which has more than $50 billion in assets and operates in 16 countries. O'Brien serves as a Director or Trustee in many organizations including, the $100 billion Prudential Insurance Mutual Fund, the Neighborhood Housing Services of New York and Niagara University; and he is the founder of the Galway Bay Foundation, Inc. In 2000, Edward Cardinal Egan of New York named O'Brien as a Knight of the Holy Sepulchre and in 2001 Molloy College bestowed an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws upon him. Mr. O'Brien has previously served as a member of the National Advisory Board of Fannie Mae and the Advisory Committee of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and, a Trustee of Molloy College of Rockville Centre, New York.

The annual scholarship dinner on May 8 will commence with cocktails at 7:00 pm; dinner at 8:00. Ticket prices are as follows: General admission tickets are from $200 per person; Youth tickets are $150 (35 and under if purchased by April 23rd; $175 thereafter). Tables (including sponsorships of scholarships) may also be purchased as follows: Chairman Table ($25,000); Vice-Chairman Table ($15,000); President's Table ($10,000); Benefactor Table ($5,000); Patron Table ($3,000); and Sponsor Table ($2,500).

For further information, to receive an invitation or to purchase tickets, visit our Website at www.HTSF.org or call 212-986-6881 or 333-7456.