TARPON SPRINGS, Fla. — Thousands cheered in celebration of a new Spring Bayou cross-retreiver Sunday in the largest Epiphany celebration in the Western Hemisphere.

Epiphany commemorates the centuries-old baptism of Jesus Christ.

For the 113th year, crowds turned out at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral and at Spring Bayou for the traditional throwing of the cross during Epiphany celebrations.

The blessing of the Fleet took place Saturday, with the traditional cross throw Sunday afternoon.

"We're deeply rooted here. Getting this cross just makes you a bigger part of the community. It just makes you well known around town," cross-diver Alex Theophilopoulos said.

In the weeks leading up to Epiphany, an ardent process selects 50 to 60 young men. On Epiphany Day, the boys, usually between ages 15 and 18, dive in the often chilly bayou waters — all hoping to retrieve a cross tossed into the water by an archbishop.

The throwing of the cross symbolizes casting of the bread of truth upon the trouble world and commemorates the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan. The plunging of the young boys into the waters signifies Jesus' going into the river Jordan.

Tradition says the boy who retrieves the cross is blessed with a year of good fortune. Ilias Skandaliaris, 17, happened to be that boy.

"Once I got up for my first breath of air, I saw bubbles," he said. "I went straight down, saw the white cross, I grabbed it and just the moment I grabbed it, I jumped up with it."

Skandaliaris, who was born in Greece but raised in Tarpon Springs, was among 50 other boys diving for the cross on Sunday. It took him about 12 seconds to emerge with it. Skandaliaris carried back to Saint Nicholas Cathedral where the Archbishop blessed him.

"I'm going to remember this moment until the day that I die," he said. 

Anywhere from 20,000 to 30,000 people converge on the community for the celebration.

The Glendi celebration follows with eating, drinking and dancing as all things Greek are highlighted.

Epiphany Day Celebration Road Closures

Sunday January 6, 2019 

Closures from 8 a.m. until 11 a.m.

Primary Locations:

Pinellas Avenue (US Alternate 19 SR 595) from Orange Street to Lemon Street

Tarpon Avenue from Ring Avenue to Spring Boulevard

Court Street from Pinellas Avenue to Spring Boulevard

Spring Boulevard from Lemon Street to Grand Boulevard

Safford Avenue from Orange Street to Lemon Street

Closures from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m.

Primary Locations:

Pinellas Avenue (US Alternate 19 SR 595) from Pine Street to Lemon Street

Tarpon Avenue from Ring Avenue to Spring Boulevard

Court Street from Pinellas Avenue to Spring Boulevard

Spring Boulevard from Lemon Street to Read Street 

Safford Avenue from Pine Street to Lemon Street

Ring Avenue from Orange Street to Lemon Street

Suggested Detours:

East – West:  Martin Luther King Jr. Drive or Spruce Street

North – South:  U.S. Highway 19

11 Things You Should Know About Epiphany

For Christians, this coming weekend marks an important celebration in the life of Jesus Christ: the Feast of the Epiphany.

How and why you observe Epiphany depends largely on where you're from. But in Tarpon Springs, the celebration is a century-old tradition for thousands of people. 

Here are some things you should know about Epiphany in Tarpon Springs:

1. In the western churches, Epiphany observes the visit of the Three Wise Men to the infant Jesus (a.k.a. Three Kings Day). But in the Orthodox churches, Epiphany observes Christ’s baptism in the River Jordan by John the Baptist.

2. Epiphany is usually celebrated on Jan. 6, though some celebrate it on New Year’s Day.

3. Tarpon Springs, in the Tampa Bay area, is home to the largest Epiphany festival in the country. Up to 20,000 people normally attend the event.

4. Tarpon Springs’ first Epiphany event took place in 1906 with just a few people.

5. Tarpon Springs’ Epiphany is very similar to how Epiphany is celebrated in Greece and one of the few in the U.S. to follow this tradition.

6. Epiphany in Tarpon Springs is such a major event that the archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church in America often attends the festivities.

7. Epiphany is celebrated over two days, beginning with the Blessing of the Fleet on Friday and culminating in the blessing of the waters on Saturday, including the diving for the cross.

8. During this ritual, a high-ranking member of the Greek Orthodox Church throws a wooden (or gold) cross into Spring Bayou, and dozens of teenage boys will dive for it.

9. Boys from nine Tampa Bay-area churches will take part in the diving for the cross this year. The dive signifies Christ’s immersion into the River Jordan. The diver who retrieves the cross receives the blessing of the church, and it’s said he will have good fortune and “divine beneficence” in the new year.

10. After the dive, there’s a festival called Glendi that features Greek food and traditional music and dancing. This year, the festival will be outside.

11. Tarpon Springs residents believe St. Nicholas, the city’s patron saint and the namesake of the Greek Orthodox Church in the city, protects them from hurricanes. Before Hurricane Irma, the last hurricane to pass through Tarpon Springs was in 1920.