The Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation was established in December 1975 in accordance with Aristotle Onassis' last wish to honor the memory of his son, Alexander. The Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation’s headquarters are located in Vaduz, Liechtenstein, as was directed in Aristotle Onassis' will.
The President and the Board of Directors are elected on an annual basis and each part is re-elected by the Board itself by majority vote.
Wishing to honour the memory of his son, Alexander, who lost his life in 1973 in a plane crash when he was 25 years old, Aristotle Onassis directed in his handwritten will that half of his inheritance would be used for the establishment of the foundation, which was to bear the name of Alexander S. Onassis. Therefore, the Onassis Foundation has no relationship with Athina Onassis nor with her inheritance, which was bequeathed to her from the portion of her mother, Christina Onassis. It should be noted here that Aristotle Onassis will does not foresee that his descendants will have any right whatsoever to become members of the Board of Directors of the Onassis Foundation.
All the activities of the Foundation are exclusively funded by the profits of the independent and NGO business foundation which operates under the name Alexander S. Onassis Foundation and whose headquarters are located in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. The Foundation engages mostly in shipping, real estate investments and investments in financial products.
According to the regulations of the Foundation as well as Aristotle Onassis" original wish, individual philanthropy is excluded from the activities of the Foundation.
Culture, education, the environment, health, and social achievement are the main priorities of the Foundation. Its activities are mostly related to Greek culture. In the field of social achievement, all the activities are of a public benefit character.
The Foundation does not accept donations, under its statutes and by-laws.
The publications of the Onassis Foundation are a result of its activities and events. You may contact the Foundation by mail where you may state your name, your profession and the title you are interested in. The volume will be sent to you provided that there are available copies in the archives of the Foundation.
At its recent meeting in May 2010, the Board of Directors decided on the discontinuance of the Foundation's Grants Programme in Greece and abroad. However, the Foundation will continue to follow up on the developments in the fields related to its activities, deciding at times and on a case by case basis, on the financial support of independent, one-off programmes, projects and collaborations that are consistent with its by-laws and objectives.
The Onassis Cardiac Surgery Centre is not a private hospital and it is not property of the Onassis Foundation. It was constructed by the Onassis Foundation and it was handed over to the Greek Public in 1992. Since then, it has been operating under the sole responsibility of the Greek State. Patients are admitted without being charged according to their social insurance benefits.
Under the convention according to which it was handed over to the Greek public as well as under its founding law, the OCSC is governed by a seven member Board of Directors one of whom is a representative of the Onassis Foundation. The remaining six members are appointed by the government.
Job vacancies at the Onassis Foundation are announced on the websites (www.onassis.gr and www.sgt.gr) and in the Press. If you are interested in joining the staff of the Onassis Foundation or Onassis Cultural Centre, please email your CV to the following addresses: contact@onassis.gr and jobs@sgt.gr respectively. Your CV will be entered into a database which is consulted when positions become vacant.
Of course there is. Disabled people can access the Foundation by a ramp which is installed in the entrance of the building, at 7, Aeschinou street.
