CLEARWATER, Fla. (WFLA) — An annual tradition that has been around for about 50 years kicked off in Clearwater on Friday.

The Clearwater Greek Festival is being held at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church through the weekend.

Usually, the event raises funds for the church, but this year, 100% of the proceeds will go to locals affected by Helene and Milton.

“We have parishioners that lost their homes in our community,” said John Pantelis, Clearwater Greek Festival chairman and parish council president. “We’re all close-knit, and we see that they were hit really hard and we just felt that it was the right thing to do, to give back to the community.”

Around 10,000 people are expected to attend the festival over the weekend to enjoy the food, drinks and music.

“The idea that they see what goes into it and they see the love,” Cooking Booth Chairwoman Kathryn Pantelis said. “We communicate so much through food, so much of our culture is food.”

Guided church tours, live cooking demonstrations, live music, and dancing are just some of the highlights you can expect to see this year.

The Clearwater Greek Festival is being held this Friday, Saturday from 11 a.m. – 11 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m.

Click here for the full event schedule.