George Veras Presented With Archbishop Iakovos Leadership 100 Award For Excellence
(L to R) Chairman Emeritus John Payiavlas, Archbishop Demetrios and Chairman Argyris Vassiliou (far right) present George Veras with Award.
George Veras, Chief Operating Officer & Executive Producer of the Pro Football Hall of Fame (PFHOF), was presented with the Archbishop Iakovos Leadership 100 Award for Excellence at the Grand Banquet concluding the Leadership 100 35th Anniversary Conference on February 23, 2019. He was presented with the Award by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, Leadership 100 Chairman, Argyris Vassiliou, and John Payiavlas, Chairman Emeritus of Leadership 100, who had introduced him Friday at his keynote address.
A 10-time National Sports Emmy Award winner and producer of seven Olympics for CBS Sports and NBC Sports, Veras gave the keynote address at the Business Forum on Friday, February 22, 2019. He gave a multi-media presentation of the similarity of the emission of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Leadership 100 that captured the history of the major sports and entertainment television, documentary and live events that characterized his career, juxtaposing this with events in the life of the Greek Orthodox Church, the Greek Family and his own family and Greek heritage.
Veras joined the PFHOF in 2009 after 15 years with CBS Sports and time as owner of Veras Communications Production Company, and as Manager and Executive Producer for the world-renowned musician Yanni, for whom he produced shows including “Live at the Acropolis”, “Live at the Taj Mahal” and “Live at the Forbidden City”.
Veras was named to his current position in December 2016 by Hall of Fame President & CEO David Baker. As Chief Operating Officer & Executive Producer, he oversees marketing, sponsorships, ticket sales, hospitality, guest services, social media, events, media, content and television. He is contributing the programming, media, and event support for the $886 M Johnson Controls Hall of Fame Village.
Veras came to the Hall of Fame in 2009 as President of PFHOF Enterprises, the for- profit arm of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He created the Hometown Hall of Famer program, celebrating the community’s support of the Gold Jackets, the US Army Award for Excellence and the Fan Vote, along with five one-hour television specials for NFL Network. He secured first time national sponsors Phillips Van Heusen, Allstate, Ford, Guinness, and the US Army, for $20 million, with appearance fees for the Hall of Famers of $4 million.
Veras is an Adjunct Professor of Sports Business at Case Western Reserve University, a judge for the National Sports Emmys, an Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Order of Saint Andrew, a member of St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church, Rocky River, Ohio and an Ellis Island Gold Medalist. Past associations include member of 1996 Athens Olympic Committee, Board membership for the Cleveland Pops Orchestra and Anatolia College, Thessaloniki.
Veras’ wife, Kimberly (Gallas), has a B.A. of Journalism from The Ohio State University, worked for the New York Yankees in promotions and marketing, and currently is serving her second term on the City Council in Brecksville (OH). They are the parents of four sons, Dr. Dimitri Veras, Gregory, Alexander (Jennifer), Christopher, and granddaughter, Savannah Noel.
