YEREVAN, Armenia–Share-a-Pair, part of The Paros Foundation’s 100 for 100 Projects for Prosperity, has successfully distributed more than 25,000 pairs of new shoes to Armenia’s most needy children.

Thanks to the support of generous sponsors and a major U.S. shoe manufacturer, The Paros Foundation staff and its volunteers and non-governmental organization partners, coordinated the effort to distribute shoes to children in need. Shoes were distributed to children in 11 orphanages, 8 boarding schools, 12 NGOs, and in14 cities and more than 100 villages throughout Armenia. Volunteers from Armenia, Sweden and the United States joined together in this ambitious distribution effort.

“Share-a-Pair embarked on the daunting task of putting shoes on the feet of children in Armenia’s most isolated and economically challenged villages and regions.” Said Peter Abajian, Executive Director of The Paros Foundation. “Paros Foundation Staff and volunteers visited more than 100 villages using kindergartens and schools as distribution points within a 3-month period.”

“Working to get shoes to children in the villages was exhausting.” Said Kristen Abajian, co-founder of Share-a-Pair. “Long drives on terrible roads, beautiful scenery and difficult conditions in the villages made this experience an emotional one for all of us. Seeing happy children and smiling faces made it all worth while.”

The Paros Foundation has produced a short nine-minute video featuring the shoe distribution process and some of the beneficiaries. The video is available by calling (310) 400-9061, or can be found on the Foundation’s website www.paros-foundation.org, facebook page or on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_17oYhBSrP0).

“When we started Share-a-Pair 18 months ago, our goal was clear and within reach—put 1,000 pairs of new shoes on the feet of needy Armenian children. I am so thankful that with the support of a selfless group of volunteers and donors, we were able to not only reach, but also far exceed our original goal. Now our focus shifts to warm winter boots,” said co-founder Bridget Abajian.

The Share-a-Pair team has now launched an effort to put warm winter boots on the feet of Armenia’s needy children called “Operation Winter Boots.” Donations are welcome in any amount, and a $20 donation will ensure a child’s feet stay warm in Armenia this winter.

The Paros Foundation was formally launched in 2006 and is based in Berkeley, California. Its Chairman, Roger Strauch, and Executive Director, Peter Abajian, have a long history of working with Armenia and the Armenian-American community to support Armenia’s rich culture and heritage, improve the lives of people with disabilities and to create positive opportunities for Armenia’s children. In 2011, The Paros Foundation launched its Paros 100 for 100, Projects for Prosperity initiative to properly commemorate the centennial of the Armenian Genocide through the implementation of 100 special projects benefiting Armenia and her people. The Paros Foundation is not affiliated with the Ghazarian family’s Paros “Lighthouse” Charitable Foundation.

For more information and to get involved, please visit www.paros-foundation.org.

Yerevan, Armenia—Sixteen high-school students from The College Preparatory School in Oakland, California had the unique and exciting opportunity to meet with U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Heffern to discuss the mission of the U.S. Embassy in Armenia as part of their recent journey to Armenia. While at the Embassy, students also heard from several senior staff about careers in the U.S. Foreign Service.

In addition to being hosted at the U.S. Embassy, the delegation of 16 students and representatives from the School and The Paros Foundation visited the ROA Foreign Ministry and met with H.E. Amb. Vahe Gabrielyan, head of the Armenia’s Diplomatic Academy, and several historic and cultural sites throughout Armenia including riding on the aerial tramway to the magnificent Monastery of Tatev.

As part of their visit, the students from The College Preparatory School were introduced to several students from the Manana Youth Center, where they each had a unique opportunity to interact with one another as peers. During the visit, both groups of students participated in the ground breaking and clearing of the future site of “Ari’s Playground,” one of the Paros 100 for 100, Projects for Prosperity initiatives currently underway. Ari’s Playground is being built at the Yerevan Children’s Home in Nork, Armenia, which houses more than 80 children ages 0-6 years of age. Ari’s Playground is being named after Ari Spiglanin, who was adopted from the Yerevan Children’s Home more than 2 years ago by Lauren and Tom Spiglanin, who have taken the initiative to raise the funds necessary to complete this exciting project. For more information about Ari’s Playground visit www.paros-foundation.org/paros100/.

Founded in 1960, The College Preparatory School is an independent coeducational day school, grades 9-12 for intellectual risk-takers who want to pursue a serious, purposeful education with others who feel the same way. The College Preparatory School has been ranked by the Wall Street Journal and by Forbes.com as one of the top independent high schools in the nation.

Formally launched in 2006, The Paros Foundation’s goal is to develop high-quality, high-integrity non-governmental organizations in Armenia by providing guidance and needed resources. This includes providing inspiring office space; free of charge, to three of the six organizations The Foundation works with in Armenia. To honor the centennial of the Armenian Genocide, The Paros Foundation launched The Paros 100 for 100, Projects for Prosperity program to implement 100 special projects, to help grow Armenia stronger and improve the lives of her people.

The College Preparatory School delegation was made possible through the support of The Paros Foundation.

From One of the Participants:

American Students Visit Armenia
On Tuesday April 3, 2012, 16 jet-lagged American teenagers and two faculty members arrived at Zvartnots Armenian International Airport. We planned to spend 11 days touring the beautiful and culturally rich country of Armenia. My fellow students and I attend The College Preparatory School in Oakland. Our group ranged in age from 14-18 years old and came from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds. Many students had yet to travel outside North America. The idea for the trip came from Roger Strauch, the founder of Paros Foundation. Peter Abajian, Paros’ Executive Director, organized the itinerary and logistics. Beginning in October, we students raised funds from food sales and school wide car washes. Eventually, we were ready for this unique opportunity and once in a lifetime experience.

Our itinerary was packed with adventure. At the airport, we were met by the chief coordinator, Pete, our energetic tour guide, Marina, our good friend and trip assistant Harutoun, our nationally famous bus driver, Varek, and of course, Roger. We immediately set off for our “home” passing by a little Las Vegas, Drunken Bridge, the National Assembly grounds, and the president’s house.

On the first day, the group visited key tourist destinations in Yerevan. First thing in the morning, we climbed aboard our bus named “Cool Bus” and headed for Mother Armenia, an enormous statue at the top of the city visible from anywhere in Yerevan. At the same site, we saw the war memorial, which is dedicated to unidentified Armenian soldiers KIA during WW1 and the Azerbajian war. We then visited the modern art museum in the Cascade, which features famous art pieces connected with ancient Armenian history and awesome glass sculptures. Afterwards, we ate delicious chicken kebab sandwiches and made a quick visit to St. Gregory’s, Armenia’s largest church located in central Yerevan. The same day, we were honored to meet the United States Ambassador, the Honorable John Heffern, and his senior staff at the embassy itself. We visited and befriended the children of the Manana Youth Center, the leading organization in Armenia that provides kids with the technology and professional guidance for movie making and journalistic photography. We paired up with Manana high school students who were were English speaking. They showed us some of their brilliant, beautiful, and touching movies and the rooms where they filmed and edited many of these films. We all met for dinner later that night, and after warming up to our new friends, we all danced to traditional and classy live Armenian music in the center of the restaurant. It was incredibly fun.

On Day 2, the combined student group of about 35 people visited Samosavank monastery, located on the edge of a 2,000 ft. deep canyon. There we learned about the geology of the area and the history of the Church. We of course also found time to have a huge snowball fight! That afternoon our large group worked on a service project to clear out the yard of an orphanage so that the Paros Foundation could begin construction of a wading pool and play area. That night, we invited the Manana kids to a homemade American lasagna dinner, and together we worked several hours to make an entertaining stop motion pixilation film.

The third day consisted of the Manana and Prep kids bussing to the ancient pagan temple at Garni. After Garni, we drove, while playing some pretty crazy Armenian kids games, to the monastery complex at Geghard and explored the seven different chapels built into the mountain. We then drove back to Yerevan and toured the National History Museum in Republic Square. At this museum, our proud and knowledgeable tour guide showed us ancient wheels, golden jewelry, the world’s oldest shoe, and enormous food cauldrons. On our way home via subway, innocent Charlie, a 6’8” Prep basketball player, thought he that he should take some pictures of the “Armenian Underground” to show to his family.  Alas, poor Charlie was arrested because the subway system is also a bomb shelter. Fellow Prep student Dina’s awesome Russian-speaking skills came to the rescue, and he was let out with only a warning.

On Day 4, the group perused the market of Vernissage where the Prep students purchased all sorts of fun merchandise including old Soviet military medals, a Soviet stopwatch and dysfunctional spyglasses, duduks, teeshirts, and bracelets. After that, we bussed to lunch at Lake Sevan and wound up the path to take pictures of the beautiful lake and landscape. On the path, we met a famous stone carver who was diligently working on his next piece while overlooking the spectacular scenery. We then traveled to the ancient city of Dilijan and watched some pottery being made. That night, barbeque dinner was at an enormous restaurant equipped with a jumpy house for kids, a dance floor and stage, a Las Vegas style fountain, and 1,400 of our best Armenian friends.

The next day was Easter. We were fortunate enough to attend Badarak at Holy Etchmiazin and then engage in a traditional egg cracking competition at the Armenian Cultural Center. Later the group was taken to the Genocide Memorial where we laid a wreath at the eternal flame, but unfortunately the
museum itself was closed. The next day, we climbed down St. Gregory’s pit at Khor Virap, and then drove many hours to Tatev Monastery. To reach the secluded fortress, we had to take the world’s longest sky tramway. We then explored the labyrinth of rooms dug into the mountain. That night, the group stayed in a hotel in the village of Goris and walked around in the hills looking for all the caves where the locals keep their cattle. The next morning, the group visited the Stonehenge of Armenia, Karahunge, and then we took the long winding road, through a canyon, to Noravank monastery. We had to climb a narrow, ancient staircase to access the sanctuary.

After an exhausting week of travel, we returned to Yerevan for our last full day in Armenia. We visited Grand Candy, the Foreign Ministry,
and then had a fantastic party with the Manana kids celebrating a successful trip. Besides being fun and a first class adventure, Armenia broadened all of our horizons, and many of the students have said that they want to return to Armenia with their families in the future.

Written by: Alex Kulhanjian Strauch
The College Preparatory School Class of 2014

White Lake Township, MI—A Barbie, a new shiny bike or perhaps even a puppy… these are the types of gifts one would expect a four year old to ask for on her fifth birthday. Not Mia! This Michigan based young lady can teach many of us about the spirit of giving. She decided that for her 5TH birthday, she wanted all of her friends and family to come to her party and bring a new pair of winter boots for needy children in Armenia.

“I saw a little girl on TV that decided to deliver boots to an orphanage. I thought maybe I could do that because we both have lots of stuff already,” said Mia.

Her mom, Debbie Dalbis, contacted the Detroit Chapter of share-a-pair, a project of The Paros Foundation to see if Mia’s wish could be fulfilled and the boots that she was aiming to collect actually get onto the feet of needy children in Armenia. On May 19th, family and friends gathered to celebrate Mia’s 5th birthday. The net result is this special five year-old’s wish came true. This winter, almost 200 children (that is 400 feet!) will have warm and dry feet thanks to Mia’s selflessness, her mom’s commitment to her community, and the generosity of Mia’s family and friends.

“Mia is an incredible little girl and with the support of her family, has done an incredible thing. “Said Peter Abajian, Executive Director of The Paros Foundation. “We will ship these new boots to Armenia and distribute them to vulnerable children this fall so they can wear the boots this winter.”

Share-a-pair has distributed more than 12,600 pairs of shoes to vulnerable children in Armenia. Distributions will continue through the month of July during a regional distribution campaign, during which an additional 12,200 pair will put on the feet of children in need. Share-a-pair was started in 2010 with a fixed goal of collecting and distributing 1,000 pairs for Armenia’s children. It has since met the initial goal and has grown into a substantial humanitarian effort.

Formally launched in 2006, The Paros Foundation’s goal is to develop high-quality, high-integrity non-governmental organizations in Armenia by providing guidance and needed resources. This includes providing inspiring office space; free of charge, to three of the six organizations The Foundation works with in Armenia. To honor the centennial of the Armenian Genocide, The Paros Foundation launched The Paros 100 for 100, Projects for Prosperity program to implement 100 special projects, to help grow Armenia stronger and improve the lives of her people. For more information on The Paros Foundation or the Paros 100 for 100 Projects for Prosperity visit www.paros-foundation.org/.

This week Manana Center hosted students of College Preperatory School, Oakland, California. On the
first day students visited Manana Center, watched several films, animations and photos by our students.

The next day after traveling to Saghmosavanq, all the students went to Nork orphanage and helped with cleaning the area for the future playgro
und, which is one of the projects of The Paros 100 Projects for Prosperity Program launched by Paros Foundation.
Later Manana’s students visited the house where CPS’s students stay in, made a pixelation and shooted a short film. For the next two days students visited Garni, Geghard, Sevan and Dilijan.

Beverly Hills, CA—Imelda Marcos, Philippine President Ferdinand Marco’s widow, refuted her reputation of excess by saying “I did not have 3,000 pairs of shoes, I had 1,060.”

While some dream of having that many pairs of shoes to choose from each day, many children in Armenia lack the basic necessity of a simple pair of sturdy shoes. The Share-a-Pair project of The Paros Foundation (www.parosfoundation.org) recently completed the distribution of 500 pairs of shoes to children in need in Armenia.

“This trip we focused our distributions on school shoes and winter boots for children at four of Armenia’s orphanages in and around Yerevan, Gavar and Vanadzor,” said Kristen Abajian. “It was really fulfilling to see the end result of our efforts. These children will now have a decent pair of shoes to wear to school. Early next year, we hope to have secured enough support to begin distributing shoes to needy children in the villages and other regions of Armenia.”

“The need for shoes for children is pretty much never ending, both because of the extreme change of seasons and the fact that these children are growing.” Said Bridget Abajian.

South Bay Chapter Founder Sofia Dilsizian commented, “The donors and supporters that met our request for funding and shoes made this effort possible and deserve a lot of thanks.”

“No one needs 1,060 pairs of shoes,” said Kristen Abajian, “but every kid needs a single pair of dependable shoes or boots. My goal is to make sure that no child goes to school without a decent pair of shoes on their feet.”

Share-a-Pair is able to purchase one quality pair of shoes for $10. Donations are welcomed in any amount. 100% of the proceeds will be spent buying new shoes. Donations of new practical shoes in all sizes are also appreciated and welcomed. Donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.

For more information, please visit “http://www.paros-foundation.org/shareapair” or look for us and follow us on Facebook, search for “share a pair”.

Kristen and Bridget Abajian founded share-a-pair as a direct result of their experience living in Armenia and their subsequent visits seeing the difficult conditions of many of Armenia’s needy children and orphans. Sofia Dilsizian immediately joined the effort and founded the first
Share-a-Pair chapter in the South Bay area of Los Angeles. Kristen, Bridget and Sofia have been friends since they were each three years old. All are currently high school seniors.

Yerevan, Armenia – The Paros Foundation, based in Berkeley, California, has launched a bold initiative called the Paros 100 for 100 Projects for Prosperity. Paros 100 for 100 will lead the implementation of 100 charitable projects in Armenia funded primarily by the Diaspora community working with local non-governmental organization (NGO) partners.

‘As the international community mobilizes to solemnly commemorate the centennial of the Armenian Genocide, the staff and volunteers of The Paros Foundation, along with our NGO partners, stand ready to implement 100 projects over the next three and a half years to help strengthen the Armenian Republic and improve the lives of our brothers and sisters in Armenia.’ Said Peter Abajian, Executive Director of The Paros Foundation. ‘Our people annually remember what we lost, this effort aims to memorialize those losses by empowering those who live.’

The Paros 100 for 100 is focused in four broad categories:

• Development — projects providing people the opportunity to work and care for their families and to the development of civil society, transparency and a stronger democracy in Armenia.
• Education — Ensure the intellectual development of future generations with new technology assistance to students and their schools.
• Cultural — Preserve and promote Armenia’s rich heritage and culture.
• Humanitarian — Improve the lives of the elderly, children and people with disabilities.

Individuals, families, groups and organizations are invited to participate by sponsoring a project, submitting a proposal for a project, and volunteering. To facilitate the sponsorship of the Paros 100 for 100, a new section on The Paros Foundation website was launched today detailing projects that are available for sponsorship, and inviting the community and NGOs in Armenia to submit their own projects or ideas. The website address is www.paros-foundation.org/paros100. The site will be continuously updated with newly accepted and completed projects.

‘Directly supporting a project that contributes to the development of Armenia, and helps improve the lives of its citizens has never been easier. People can quickly identify a project area, obtain additional information and determine the benefits of the specific project all within a matter of a few clicks on the website. I encourage the community to visit the website frequently to view newly listed projects and progress on existing projects.’ Said Abajian. ‘All project sponsors will be invited to participate on Paros Foundation led trip to Armenia in April, 2015 to commemorate the centennial of the Armenia Genocide and to visit several of the Paros 100 for 100 projects.’

Donations to The Paros Foundation are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. The Paros Foundation is a 501(c)3 Private Foundation.

To learn more about the Paros 100 for 100 please visit www.paros-foundation.org/ or contact The Paros Foundation at (310) 400-9061 US or (091) 426 120 Armenia, or via email at peter@paros-foundation.org.

During Golden Apricot International Film Festival the Armenian premiere screening of Neighbors, a documentary film made by Manana Films studio took place. 

The international premiere screening of the film took place in Istanbul International Film Festival in April.

Neighbors is a feature-length documentary tell about two villages situated on both sides of Armenian-Turkish border. The film is made with the support of Royal Norwegian Embassy and Armenia Turkey Cinema Platform.

The European premiere screening of the film will take place in Fall.

Naregatsi Art Institute, Yerevan, Armenia

Today the Paros Chamber Choir was featured at a concert organized by the Naregatsi Art Institute to commemorate the Armenian Genocide and Easter.  Paros closed the concert with five a capella songs: Tebe Poyom by D.Bortnyansky, Quando Corpus from Stabat Mater by G.Rossini, Norahrash by Komitas, Echmiadzin by K.Meykhanajyan, and Hayr Mer (The Lord’s Prayer) by Komitas.