Across the Eastern Diocese, parish coffee hours are becoming potent moments of connection and commitment in support of the St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral Restoration Project.
These gatherings, casual in form but meaningful in impact, are helping to broaden awareness and deepen engagement of the importance of the project as it enters its next critical chapter.
During each coffee hour, parishioners are invited to view an engaging six-minute video that introduces the Cathedral Restoration Campaign. The gatherings offer a welcoming space to learn about the urgent needs of the project, ask questions, and connect personally to a Diocese-wide undertaking grounded in the shared belief of “healing the cathedral that heals us.”
Striking images in the video of the cathedral’s weathered and damaged exterior and long-standing interior disrepair deeply moved coffee hour attendees and reinforced the critical need for the Restoration Campaign. Phase One of the restoration, which took place from 2023 to 2024 and was completed on time and on budget, focused on the cathedral’s cracked and compromised exterior.
With that milestone achieved and the exterior of the edifice restored, attention now turns to Phase Two: the much-needed internal restoration, scheduled to begin in Spring of 2026. As construction and preservation costs continue to rise, the Restoration Campaign has expanded its fundraising outreach to parishes across the Eastern Diocese through hosted, informational coffee hours.
“We are all connected”
Coffee hours have already taken place at parishes in Columbus, OH; Providence, RI; Houston, TX; Watertown, MA; Watervliet, NY; Livingston, NJ; and St. Paul, MN (pictured above). Support continues to grow as additional coffee hours are planned in communities including Chicago, Detroit and beyond.
Each gathering reinforces the message that no matter how far we may be geographically, we are all one family connected to St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral through our Armenian Christian faith and heritage.
As one donor at a recent coffee hour shared: “We are all connected to St. Vartan Cathedral. Despite the physical distance, it still represents me spiritually. I contributed to the restoration campaign as an act of ongoing commitment to the cathedral and our faith.”
Gregory Kolligian, parish council chair of Holy Trinity Church in. Cambridge, MA, added: “We hosted a coffee hour to inform our parishioners of the importance of this monumental undertaking at the Mother Cathedral, and to promote fundraising at all levels in the parish. The response was very positive, and our parishioners understood the importance of this project, as St.Vartan Cathedral is the epicenter of our beloved Diocese.”
With the help of faithful people across the Eastern Diocese, the goal is to raise the requisite funds to restore St. Vartan Cathedral to its physical and functional glory, so it can serve as the shining gem of the Armenian American community for generations to come.
But we can’t do it without your help. Please donate, learn more and follow the progress on this most important project by visiting the website of the St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral Restoration Project website: StVartan.org.
By Stephan S. Nigohosian