Last fall, as the crushing realities involving Artsakh were beginning to dawn on Armenians across the world, a sermon by Fr. Vasken Kouzouian inspired the faithful of Holy Trinity Church (Cambridge, MA) with a desire to help the Armenian families displaced from their holy, historic homeland.
In the months that followed, the parish took steps to fulfill its promise, by organizing a clothing drive to help the refugees endure the bitter winter. Volunteers collected and sorted through thousands of pieces of clothing—and this month, Fr. Vasken and Yn. Arpi Kouzouian landed in Armenia to place these much-needed items into the hands of those in need.
Der Vasken and Yn. Arpi were joined by Boghos and Shaké Derderian (of our Diocesan parish in Wynnewood, PA) on their travels to villages around Armenia where families from Artsakh have been settling. From the very first encounter, they heard emotional stories from people who had left their homes and homeland with little more than the clothes on their backs.
“We had to leave everything behind,” was a frequent refrain, punctuating heartrending stories of forced evacuation; of lost loved ones; of transporting bedridden and disabled elders through danger to cross the border.
Through all the stories of suffering was an underlying determination to survive as Armenians. For the visitors from Holy Trinity, it was a poignant reminder of why the community had come together to collect warm clothing, and why each item in the 117 boxes they brought would be a meaningful offering to another living soul.
Among the Villagers
They traveled nearly seven hours to Armenia’s southern-most cities and villages, meeting with some of the 400 relocated families of Artsakh living in the region. In addition to offering warm clothing, they brought words and prayers of hope to those who feel lost in this new place far from where once they called home.
At the City Municipal Building of Geti Village, they met with seven displaced families. During the distribution of clothes, Der Vasken saw a man standing in the back of the hall and asked him what size coat he wears. “ No, no, I have a coat,” the man replied, pointing to the thin spring jacket that hung on his shoulders; “please give that coat to someone who doesn’t have one.”
At a gathering in the town hall of the city of Kajaran, the mayor told them: “We swore that we wouldn’t write the last page of the Armenian story. So everyone you see here today, including our Der Shirak, dedicated themselves to defending the borders of Siunik and all of the southern border of Armenia.”
As he spoke, Der Vasken looked around the hall at the people there. “Everywhere I looked I saw heroes: fellow Armenians dedicated to preserving their faith, heritage, and the borders of their country. The people trying on the coats looked up to us; but we looked at them—soldiers and civilians, young and old—and saw what it means to be a hero.”
At the Women’s Center in the city of Goris, the Holy Trinity group unloaded a van of coats, shirts, boots, and other necessities to defend against the cold of winter. They met with Goris Mayor Irina Yolyan, who explained the ongoing needs of the families who have decided to make Goris their new home: housing, schooling, and social services will be among the ongoing concerns for the mayor’s office.
At the Armenian Church’s diocesan center in the heart of Goris and met with the Primate of the Diocese of Siunik, Fr. Magar Hakobyan, who explained the tireless effort the church has kept up since the displaced families arrived. He is clearly loved by the people, and they are blessed to have someone of his dedication and personality leading them spiritually.
Realities of the Time
On the road back to Yerevan, they stopped at a school undergoing renovation to serve the youngest children in the area, which will include newly-arrived children from Artsakh. Unfortunately, this school is located near the Nakhichevan mountains, so in addition to renovating the classrooms, an underground bunker was being added to protect the children from snipers—a reminder of the tragic realities of the time.
Throughout this journey, Fr. Vasken and Yn. Arpi have been working with a team from the Paros Foundation led by Peter Abajian and Shaké Derderian from the U.S., and local members Marina Khachatryan, Armen Simonyan, Kegham Minasyan, and Yura Sargsyan, along with Houry Abajian and Boghos Derderian.
Fr. Vasken has been posting a “diary” of his daily thoughts on the Holy Trinity Facebook page, and there you can follow the delegation’s travels to the northern climes of Armenia to distribute the rest of the donated clothing.
Click here to access the Facebook page. And click the following link to view photos of Holy Trinity’s mission of mercy.