Thunder Bay Venue the Apollo Facing Eviction, Launches Fundraiser

There's a GoFundMe campaign to "Save the Apollo"

BY Alex HudsonPublished Sep 21, 2021

The Apollo, a long-running venue in Thunder Bay, ON, is facing imminent closure and is seeking to raise money to save the space.

A GoFundMe campaign seeks to raise $200,000, which would cover the venue's tax arrears of $174,623.85. There's also a change.org petition to save the Apollo. Currently, the owners are set to be evicted on October 5, 2021.

The campaign notes that the owners, mother Constantina Stathopoulos and daughter Sheila Stathopoulos, were victims of fraud in the 2000s. The two have also faced medical struggles: Sheila had stage 3 ovarian cancer and experiences daily chemotherapy fatigue, while Constantina has Alzheimer's.

The family previously owned two family homes and had shares in a handful of businesses, but the Apollo is their final property. They do not have any savings, as all their money reportedly went towards utility bills while the venue was closed during COVID-19 lockdowns. An hour-long video, embedded below, details the Stathopoulos family's financial struggles in Sheila's words. A separate 40-minute video with Constantina tells the story of the venue and its financial issues.

Check out the GoFundMe page here.

The Apollo previously was listed for sale back in 2013. The venue is known for putting on shows as well as hosting touring bands in its adjoining rooms. Notably, Vancouver band Apollo Ghosts took their name from an experience staying at the venue.


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