For Immediate Release
August 13, 2007

1992–2007: Celebrating 15 years of nation-building in Armenia and Karabakh

ARMENIA FUND 1997–1998

NEW YORK, New York — The year 2007 marks the 15th Anniversary of Armenia Fund, a pillar organization created after Armenia’s independence and mandated with the vital task of uniting all Armenians around the world to direct efforts toward development and revival of the nation. For 15 years, the Fund, with its international affiliates across the globe, has touched countless lives in Armenia and Karabakh. Combining aid, development and direct investment, Armenia Fund has engaged Armenia’s leaders, its people and the worldwide Diaspora to promote education, create jobs, improve public health and develop infrastructure, among other critical humanitarian needs. Today, Armenia Fund’s contributions to social and economic prosperity of Armenia and Karabakh are unprecedented.

The 15th Anniversary of Armenia Fund is a celebration of the past, present and future of the Armenian people. It is a celebration of overcoming challenges by working together. Above all, it is a celebration of humanity, courage and hope.

ARMENIA FUND 1997 – 1998

Along with the several large-scale initiatives already underway in Armenia and Karabakh, from 1997-1998 there was an upsurge in Armenia Fund’s projects focusing on social infrastructure, particularly schools, kindergartens, residential buildings, hospitals and healthcare clinics.

In Gyumri, where the 1988 earthquake had shattered not only infrastructure but also the lifestyle and hope of the people, Armenia Fund put together an ambitious reconstruction plan. This involved the completion of the “Sayat Nova”, “Mush” and “Ani” residential districts where Robert Boghossian & Sons also sponsored an educational center. To this date, orphaned children live and study at the Boghossian Educational Center. Among other projects were the Mush School, the Children Art Center, the Shahan Shahnour Secondary School, as well as the Arshak Chopanian School in Gyumri. The Fund also reconstructed the Physics and Mathematics Boarding School in Yerevan.

The Boghossian Education Center in Gyumri

The devastating consequences of the Karabakh conflict took an immense toll on the everyday life of the local people depriving them of even basic social services. Here as well, the lack of functioning schools posed the serious problem of failing to educate an entire generation of children. Given the urgency of the situation, Armenia Fund initiated the construction and restoration of over a dozen schools in Stepanakert and in the villages of Karabakh. The Stepanakert Boarding School was the first among such initiatives.

Children in traditional dance costumes at the opening of the Stepanakert Boarding School, 1997

Revitalizing the healthcare system in Armenia and Karabakh has always been a priority for Armenia Fund, but the need for intervention became particularly urgent from 1997-1998. This was due to the collapsing healthcare infrastructure across the country on the one hand, and the increasingly deteriorating health of the population on the other. A major undertaking in this direction was the complete restoration and modernization of the Yerevan Clinic for Pediatric Care, the Pediatric Surgery Center of which today has become an important hub of pediatric research and study.

Today, the Yerevan Hospital for Pediatric Care, restored and modernized by Armenia Fund in 1998, is an important hub of pediatric research and study

What made Armenia Fund a unique institution in these years was not only the pace at which the Fund completed critically needed large-scale infrastructure projects, but also its ability to affect change in the most underserved and vulnerable communities in Armenia and Karabakh.

Over the past 15 years, Armenia Fund has invested more than $170 million in sustainable development in Armenia and Karabakh. This makes the Fund the largest contributor to critical infrastructure projects in all aspects of social and economic activity. Securing long-term development solutions, the Fund has had an outstanding impact on the lives of countless citizens of Armenia and Karabakh. Armenia Fund has evolved over the years into an organization that has an unprecedented track record of affecting change. In recognition to its development work, Armenia Fund was accredited to the United Nations in spring of 2006, as one of the most credible international organizations working in Armenia and Karabakh.

To recognize and thank the Diaspora for its 15 years of continuous support to Armenia and Karabakh, Armenia Fund will hold a 15th Anniversary Gala Banquet at the United Nations on October 6, 2007. Join Armenia Fund as it celebrates the tenacity of the Armenian people and strength of the Armenian Diaspora!

ABOUT ARMENIA FUND USA: founded in 1992, was one of the first of Hayastan All-Armenian Fund’s 19 international affiliates and serves constituents in all states east of the Mississippi. As a non-profit, non-governmental, nonsectarian organization, the Fund represents all Armenian constituents. Armenia Fund USA is the largest contributor among the 19 international affiliates – supporting strategic infrastructure projects in Armenia and Karabakh. The Fund has adopted a policy to go “Beyond Bricks and Mortar” to provide sustainability for projects it sponsors.

To learn more about Armenia Fund USA, please visit our website at
www.ArmeniaFundUSA.org or call us at 212-689-5307.

Armenia Fund USA
80 Maiden Lane, Suite 301
New York, NY 10038