Their decision to leave behind Fourna, the village where they became known across Greece did not come down to a single reason, but to a series of choices and difficulties that shaped their everyday life there.

Vasso and Stefanos’s decision to leave Fourna and move with their six children to Naxos has understandably raised questions about what really happened, and how a venture that began with such enthusiasm ultimately took a different course.

The picture that emerges from what we have gathered does not point to a single cause, but to a series of choices, financial pressures and decisions that appear to have decisively shaped how their life in the village unfolded.

This matters, because there are at least 80 videos online from the period of their stay in Fourna in which Vasso and Stefanos appear excited about their new daily life, speak positively about the village, and give the impression that they had achieved the goal they had set themselves: leaving their old life behind and raising their children in a different environment.

The decision to change house

Their first home in Fourna was a three-bedroom house with a living room-kitchen and two bathrooms, renting for 220 euros a month, which was covered by the “New Life in the Village” programme for the first year.

The family lived there for about seven months. They then decided to leave it, however, and look for a bigger house, believing it would better suit their needs. The first house did not remain empty; after they moved out, another large family with four children moved in. Vasso and Stefanos chose a semi-detached house about 100 metres from the square, with four bedrooms, a fireplace and an external staircase.

The truth about life in Fourna

On paper it seemed ideal. There was, however, one significant catch. The property had stood empty for around 25 years and needed considerable work to become fully habitable. They signed a nine-year, rent-free contract with the owner, agreeing to carry out the necessary repairs gradually. One of the main problems was the roof, as the house let in the cold. The first major job, however, was not that one.

Priority was instead given to joining the two floors internally with a wooden staircase, work that cost around 7,000 euros. The craftsman, according to reports, was willing to make the payments easier for them, as were several people who volunteered to help with the programme’s efforts.

Even so, the family gradually found itself under greater financial strain, while the underlying issue of the roof remained unresolved. At the same time, there was the question of work.

Vasso, a hairdresser and nail technician, had initially expressed a wish to work professionally in her field, though this ultimately did not go ahead. Stefanos worked during their second year there at the local forestry timber cooperative, and they were later offered positions at a guesthouse, a local taverna and the bakery that was due to open.

The choices that led Vasso and Stefanos to Naxos

The couple chose a different path instead: opening their own eatery, despite having no previous experience in the sector. The business drew on a state subsidy of 17,000 euros, and there too local support played a significant role. One resident contributed financially towards electrical work, the stove and chairs, and there was also help in making contact with suppliers. The venture, however, did not develop as they appear to have expected.

The shop itself is not closing, as it will continue to be run by Vasso’s mother and sister. Even then, according to the same sources, new job offers followed. Vasso was offered work at the bakery that was due to open, while Stefanos had the option of a job at the water bottling plant, which was preparing to move into mass production and was looking for staff.

These offers were ultimately not taken up. The family decided to leave and settle in Naxos, Stefanos’s home island. There, according to reports, he now works as a driver for a drinks wholesaler and Vasso as a cashier at a supermarket. That means two salaries, and it appears the family’s housing has also been secured.

None of this means that the dream of Fourna was false, nor that the enthusiasm of those first few months was not authentic; the dozens of videos they left behind show the opposite. What it does show is that certain choices may have added to the financial and practical weight of their new life. In the end, Naxos appears to have offered what the family needed most at this stage: greater security, two steady salaries and a more predictable framework for the future.

And if this journey proves anything, it is that the bet on a new life in the village has not been lost. On the contrary, it looks as though it is only just beginning. Teacher Panagiota Diamanti recently revealed that 11 families have already relocated to villages across the country through “New Life in the Village”, with a 12th currently in the process of moving.

The initiative has now expanded well beyond Fourna, with Zitsa in Ioannina and Kokkino in Boeotia set to be the next stops, where new families are planned to settle. Because in the end, wherever a house opens its doors again and a child’s voice is heard in the square, a village gains a reason to hope once more.