Tavush, Armenia–Children in the Tavush border communities of Achajur and Varagavan now benefit from newly renovated and expanded kindergartens. These important projects were implemented through The Paros Foundation’s Prosperity on the Border initiative over the course of the last 18 months.

In the village of Achajur, an overcrowded kindergarten meant that almost 100 children that were of kindergarten age were unable to attend and receive the benefits of early education. To address this need, The Paros Foundation agreed to completely reconfigure and reconstruct the second floor of the large building that houses the kindergarten. A new dining room and three large classrooms to accommodate the addition of these new children we successfully added. The rebuild included a more powerful heating system for the entire kindergarten, new bathrooms, new windows, and work to the exterior of the building. Work on the kindergarten at Achajur was made possible through the generous support of benefactors Ara and Valarie Cherchian.

In the village of Varagavan, only one small portion of the building that housed the village kindergarten was able to be used for a partial day program for 19 children in the village. A total of more than 40 children are of kindergarten and preschool age, but none of the children in this community were able to fully benefit from a full day early education program. This large, two story building needed a complete rebuild including roof, water, electrical, sewer and gas systems. New windows, doors, stairs, flooring and kitchens and bathrooms were installed as part of The Paros Foundation’s Prosperity on the Border initiative. Work on the kindergarten at Varagavan was made possible through donations received primarily from the “Cocktails on the Terrace” fundraiser generously sponsored by Gregory and Kelley Badishkanian at their home. To view a video of the Varagavan Kindergarten, please visit www.parosfoundation.org and search for Varagavan Kindergarten.

Focus on Children Now partnered on both of these kindergarten projects to provide high quality playgrounds and furniture for the children.

“The effects of the July attacks, Covid 19 and the Artsakh War have weighed heavily on the children in these communities,” said Peter Abajian, Executive Director of The Paros Foundation. “Returning to beautifully renovated, safe and inviting kindergartens will dramatically improve these communities return to in-person education and significantly benefit these important villages and their residents in the long-run.”

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by Christopher Atamian

Tavush is not in Artsakh!
When Azerbaijan started bombing villages along the Tavush border in mid-July, many people in the Armenian diaspora and elsewhere mistakenly assumed that they were shelling a part of Artsakh. And looking out at any of the verdant valleys in Tavush, you’d be forgiven for thinking that you were actually in Switzerland or some lost corner of paradise. But Tavush is in fact part and parcel of the Republic of Armenia proper, making Azerbaijan’s actions all the more provocative as they shattered any illusion that Armenia is not in danger of getting embroiled in an all-out war again. Located in the country’s northeastern edge and bordered by Georgia to the North and Azerbaijan to the East, Tavush is an ancient Armenian province. Its scenic capital of Ijevan–once an important rest stop on international trade routes–sits at the foothills of the Gugark Mountains, on the shores of the Aghstev River. The region measures just 2,704 km² (about one-fourth the size of Rhode Island) and on a good day has a population of just over 125,000 people.

Shelling from the other side of the border is nothing new to the farmers and other villagers who live in the region, some of whose families have been tilling the land from time immemorial. Two of its more isolated cities for example, Berd and Noyemberyan, regularly receive volleys of sniper shots from Azeri positions. As a result of this and other factors village men often leave to find work in Russia—predictably, many never return. Perhaps in desperation or out of a sense of duty, some have also signed up as contract soldiers and can be found at their military posts guarding the border—and this, for about $300 a month. This puts additional stress on the village women, who must tend to all domestic duties alone, from tilling gardens to caring for their animals, children and extended families. As a result of these precarious situations, Armenians in the region are more likely to have smaller families, which poses a demographic threat and becomes a national security issue.

Paros Foundation Implements Key Programs in Tavush
Founded in 2006 by Roger Strauch in part to address these ongoing concerns, the Paros Foundation understood from the start the strategic importance of these border positions and of helping Tavush region in general. Since 2011 they have been working to strengthen them, rebuilding houses that have been shelled and providing jobs for Armenians on the front line through its many programs. The foundation has developed a strategic and somewhat niche approach to help remedy these problems: “We implement mid-sized infrastructure improvement projects in order to raise awareness and improve conditions for these residents and ultimately help to secure the border,” explains Executive Director Peter Abajian.

Altogether from 2013 to 2020, Paros has spent almost $1.1 million in Tavush on 65 different projects. Most remarkably the foundation has no administrative costs whatsoever, “The Strauch Kulhanjian family underwrites 100% of our administrative expenses, which allows donors to allocate their contributions directly to projects,” said Abajian. In the border village of Nerkin Karmir Aghbyur, with support from Jean-Marie Atamian and his family, Paros has made major improvements to the water system, local school, kindergarten and medical center. Apart from improving infrastructure, the foundation is currently in the process of implementing an economic development project, establishing a fruit orchard with over 1,000 trees. All of these undertakings have helped to stabilize the community and led to a doubling of the annual birth rate from 2013 to today. As is evident to anyone who visits the region, border villages have been especially hard hit economically since hostilities erupted over a two decades ago between Armenia and Azerbaijan, in part because some 70% of the land in any particular village lies too close to the border to be farmed or to graze animals without the risk of being shot and killed.

Donate to Paros and Help Make Armenia Safe
As Abajian also points out, there are a wealth of current and planned programs available for interested donors. “Our work in Tavush along the border will be continuing for the foreseeable future with two major projects in Aygepar including the reconstruction of a large apartment building and the creation of an agriculture incubator facility,” said Abajian. Some are larger in scale than others, but all are affordable for anyone interested, as donations of any size can be made in true crowdfunding fashion. One particularly interesting program “Recycling on the Border” seeks to partner with the Innovative Solutions for Sustainable Development of Communities NGO (“ISSD”) in order to implement recycling education at schools in ten villages. The children will be provided with colored bins and will collect trash that is then sent to proper recycling facilities. This gives both children and their families a stronger stake in their communities—teaching them about recycling but also to care about their environment and to be happier within it. The point of Paros Foundation programs isn’t simply to patch up existing problems but to find long-term solutions for building a happy and prosperous Armenia.

A Crucial Moment In History: States don’t Have Friends, only Interests.
With the almost unbelievable news that Turkey’s Volkan Bektir is taking over the Presidency of the landmark 75th General Assembly of the United Nations, and even more remarkable threats coming from Azerbaijan’s President Aliyev to bombard Medzamor, Armenia’s nuclear plant, the young Third Republic faces an existential crisis. Fighting off two enemies, one on each side of its border, will be no easy task. And while events such as the recent destruction of Beirut Port and the COVID-19 pandemic have grabbed everyone’s attention and resources of late, a global leadership vacuum now exists that presents an existential threat for Armenia. Just as no Western power came to Armenia’s defense in 1915, none will do so now. It’s up to the diaspora to support organizations like Paros that understand how to help defend and strengthen Armenia through crucial infrastructure and life-saving projects. As Charentz famously wrote: “Oh Armenian people, your only salvation lies in the power of your unity.”

You can find out more about the Paros Foundation and its many projects at www.parosfoundation.org

Christopher Atamian is an Armenian-Italian writer, translator and filmmaker living in New York City. You can obtain a copy of his latest book, A Poet in Washington Heights, which was awarded the 2017018 Tololyan Literary Award and nominated for a National Book Award, at https://www.amazon.com/Washington-Heights-Christopher-Peter-Atamian/dp/197648393X

Gyumri, Armenia–The Debi Arach Children’s Center successfully and safely re-opened its doors on August 17, 2020 to eager students. Several changes and new policies have been set in place for the safety of the kids and staff. Along with the emphasis on safety, the staff has been working hard to prepare students for the start of school schedule for September 15, 2020.

“Our goal in restarting the Debi Arach Children’s Center prior to the start of the school year is to help the children catch up for the difficulties they faced with online learning at the end of the last school year,” said Peter Abajian.

Throughout the Pandemic Debi Arach remained committed to providing consistent meals, psychological support, and structured in-home learning to the youth. Although the facility was closed We have committed to continue paying our staff during the closure.

• We are working closely with our on-staff psychologist, who is checking in with the kids each week to help them navigate their lives during this challenging time.
• We want to make sure the students still receive consistent, adequate nutrition so we are providing food packages for all families of Debi Arach with guidelines on safety protocols for receiving and cleaning the items.

The goal is to expand the center’s programming to continue to be able to serve all of our center’s children in a safe and responsible manner including changing the manner in which meals are served and constructing temporary outdoor classrooms by taking advantage of the warm weather. Furthermore, Debi Arach will be holding both morning and afternoon sessions to accommodate children who will now be attending schools in split sessions to promote social distancing in schools.

Everyone at Debi Arach is very excited to be able to continue providing children of Gyumri with the proper supplementary educational, thorough psychological and necessary humanitarian aids they need.

To date, the center has already had several important successes. At least nine children have been taken out of boarding schools, attend our center and now live back at home with their families. Many of the children who were receiving poor grades in school are now achieving top scores. The children have become socially well-adjusted and much healthier than before with the continued consumption of multi-vitamins and a daily well-balanced meal. Staff trainings have begun with an academic counsel of professionals from the United States and Armenia to ensure that the children are receiving the best care, treatment, and methods for their development.

Paros Foundation Increases its Emergency Reconstruction Fund to $200,000

Tavush Armenia–Azerbaijan launched a vicious attack on Armenia on July 12, in violation of the ceasefire agreement.  Over the next two days, Azerbaijan launched artillery of various calibers at the Armenian civilian populations of several communities within Berd Consolidated Communities of Armenia’s Tavush Region.  The Armenian Armed Forces not only successfully defended these areas, but captured a very important military post and has destroyed tens of millions of dollars worth of Azeri artillery and drones.

Paros Foundation work crew beginning the reconstruction of the kindergarten in Aygepar.

These military victories, however, have come with a huge price tag.  Five of our valiant soldiers were killed and others along with a dozen villagers have been wounded.  In addition, families in these villages have experienced material losses on their homes and property.   Several days ago, The Paros Foundation team joined Tavush Governor Hayk Chobanyan, Berd Consolidated Communities head Harutyun Manucharyan, representatives of the Prime Minister’s office, and local village representatives to visit the Nerkin Karmir Aghbyur, Aygepar and Chinari communities to assess the damage and to strategize and coordinate the next steps forward. Due to the extent of the damage and needs of the border villages, we are increasing our fund goal to $200,000, and are humbled to report contributions and pledges to date in excess of $120,000. The Paros Foundation’s Emergency Reconstruction Fund will work to not only make repairs to these damaged homes, but, will make substantial improvements on them.  In addition, funds will be used to make other substantial infrastructure improvements within the communities.

Paros Foundation Staff join Tavush Governor Hayk Chobanyan, Berd Consolidated Communities head Harutyun Manucharyan, representatives of the Prime Minister’s office, and local village representatives to visit the Nerkin Karmir Aghbyur, Aygepar and Chinari communities to assess the damage.

Through the generous support received from donors around the world thus far, our team has already begun planning the reconstruction of damaged areas, while our local construction crews look forward to beginning the job of rebuilding their communities. Work on rebuilding the Aygepar Kindergarten has already begun.  Rebuilding of the houses will begin early next week in order to complete work prior to winter. Let’s work together to meet our new goal to rebuild the border region. To contribute, please visit /project/emergency-reconstruction-fund/

The Paros Foundation was launched in 2006 and has implemented more than $7.9 million worth of projects in Armenia through its unique model of philanthropy and community partnership. These projects are located throughout the country-with the majority of work focused in Gyumri and in the Tavush Region, along the border with Azerbaijan. Thanks to the generous support of Paros Founder and Chairman, Roger Strauch, all administrative expenses are underwritten, allowing 100% of donor contributions to be allocated in their entirety to the projects.

Aygepar Kindergarten, Armenia – Recently renovated by Paros Foundation in 2018

In immediate response to the renewed Azeri attacks on civilian populations in the Berd Consolidated Communities of Armenia’s Tavush Region, The Paros Foundation announces the launch of its Emergency Reconstruction Fund. Funds raised will be immediately deployed to repair the most severely damaged homes and other infrastructure shelled in this recent Azeri attack.

Aygepar, Armenia – Photos via Hetq

Aygepar, Armenia – Photos via Hetq

“Azerbaijan has once again targeted the civilian population in villages along the Armenian border. Many homes in Nerkin Karmir Aghbyur, Aygepar and Chinari received varying degrees of damage, including the Aygepar Kindergarten that was reconstructed by Paros in 2018,” said Peter Abajian, Executive Director of The Paros Foundation. “Our goal is to quickly deploy our work crews in the area to not only repair the damage, but make improvements to these families’ homes.”

Aygepar, Armenia – Photos via Hetq

On July 12, during the midst of the global pandemic surrounding Covid-19, Azerbaijan renewed its attack on Armenia in violation of the ceasefire agreement. Over the next two days, Azerbaijan launched artillery of various calibers at the Armenian civilian populations of several communities within Berd Consolidated Communities of Armenia’s Tavush Region. Families in these villages have experienced material losses on their homes and property. Thankfully, villagers remain safe and there has been no civilian loss of life during this period. While the Armenian government has already visited many to assist, The Paros Foundation’s Emergency Reconstruction Fund will work to not only make repairs to these damaged homes, but will make substantial improvements for them.

Azeri Protests – Photos via Civilnet

Four Armenian soldiers were killed during the fighting and several have been wounded including one in critical condition. The Armenian army has shot down 10 Azeri combat drones, including a Elbit Hermes 900 UAV with an estimated $30 million price tag. Moreover, two strategic Azeri military posts are now under Armenian control. While the military losses on the Azeri side are reported to be substantial including the death of an Azeri general, Azeri protests in several cities around the world are calling for war with Armenia.

Tavush, Armenia – Photo via Hetq