Constantinos "Tino" Kayafas is a senior from Wheeling, West Virginia, studying entrepreneurship and jazz performance. 

He admits most of his day consists of playing music. However, when he's not drumming, he's cooking gyros. 

As a Greek-American student who knows and loves his heritage, Kayafas was looking for a job – and a connection – in the college town. 

His freshman year, he approached the local restaurant 'The Greeks' and started out washing dishes. Once the pandemic hit, the owner d ecided to close business and move away. Seeing the passion Kayafas had for gyros and serving others, he sold him his first gyro machine for a great deal.

With equipment in hand, Kayafas started his own business – Philotimo Enterprises. 

"During my time at 'The Greeks' I was always treated with love, respect, and like family by our manager, and he was extremely supportive of me taking on my own gyro venture.

"I started my own delivery and catering service, Philotimo Enterprises, in Fall 2020 with an aim to serve authentic Greek food and my community," said Kayafas.

The word Philotimo in Greek means "to strive to do what is right, to have a love of honor and to always help those in need" and that was exactly his goal. 

"What makes my business different is that I offer my customers the opportunity to sponsor gyros for the homeless, and for every gyro they sponsor, I match it with another one for free," he said. "To date, I have donated 481 gyros to those in need, and my aim is to continue this program and influence other businesses in my area to foster a similar program into their business." 

Many of his first sponsored gyros went to individuals in Morgantown, such as Ruby Amphitheater and Empty Bowls Monongalia. However, being from Wheeling, he has also been able to donate to Street Moms which is an organization that serves the homeless.

Serving both Wheeling in Morgantown, Kayafas starts early on Saturday mornings. 

"I start early in the morning and deliver lunch in Wheeling and then dinner in Morgantown," he said. 

Others have noticed his hard work and dedication, and how he lives with "philotimo" each day. 

In March 2022, Kayafas was a finalist in the March Idea Challenge pitch competition hosted by West Virginia University's LaunchLab.

Not only did Kayafas learn from the experience, but he also walked away with $3,500 in additional funding to purchase more equipment. 

"Now I have two machines and I work twice as fast," he said. "I have a social media account for the business where I announce drops on Wednesday and people can fill out the order form for Saturday's delivery."

=Kayafas knows a thing or two about gyros, and he shows the Mountaineer Core Values – service, curiosity, respect, accountability and appreciation – through his philanthropy. 

By doing so, he was also honored through WVU's Center for Community Engagement's annual Excellence in Community Engagement Awards and received the Cole Unger Social Action Award in April 2022.

While cooking and serving gyros to family and friends keeps him busy, Kayafas admits he hopes to pursue a career working for a nonprofit after graduation.

Learn more about Philotimo Enterprises and the next gyro drop on the Instagram page.