In the News

The strongest tree is the one with the deepest roots. As parents, it is our responsibility to instill in our children the proud heritage of the Armenian people. Many of our children regularly attend church services and have been educated in our Armenian schools. They have heard the history and stories of our people and learned Armenian traditions. Yet, without visiting our Homeland, the deep meaning of our history does not reach its full potential.

The Birthright Armenia program provides our children with an invaluable service by allowing them to experience Armenia firsthand. Both of my sons, Raffi and Johnny have been fortunate to visit Armenia through the Birthright Armenia program. They experienced Armenia not as tourist but as residents of Yerevan. They were able to volunteer in their Motherland by providing the community with valuable services, while the community shared with them the history and flavor of Armenia. They worked on soccer fields with the local soccer team. They shared meals and laughter with others and were made to feel part of the community. It is an incredible experience to hear Armenian spoken by everyone you see.

Raffi and Johnny have been fortunate to grow up in the Armenian community of greater Detroit and attend the A.G.B.U. Alex and Marie Manoogian School, but seeing the pictures of Mt. Ararat everyday at school is quite a bit different then looking out the window and seeing Mt. Ararat with your own eyes.

Raffi is a third year college student without a care in the world except for his friends and the next basketball game. He wrote an article about the day he walked from Opera Square in Yerevan to the Holy See of Etchmiadzin with the Handicapped Children of Armenia, hosted by the Pyunic Center for Disabled. It was extremely difficult for him to make the 22 kilometer journey. He was awed by these handicapped young people, who use every ounce of their mental and physical energy to complete the journey. Raffi wrote, “I found myself surrounded by the stunning landscape, enormous Mt. Ararat to my left and a blossoming pasture of flowers to my right. In front of me these disabled young people who held the Armenian flag high and proud, the wind gusts blowing through the flag, embodied the Armenian spirit, culture and history.”

It is touching and emotional to listen to my 20-year-old son, Raffi, share his experiences with me. I joined him for three weeks in Armenia this summer as the leader of Habitat for Humanity. He had just spent the preceding five weeks in Armenia and was so impressed by Armenia that he wanted me to buy a home there. Listening to him speak about the villagers in Vayotz Dzor and the people in Yerevan, seeing him talking about, laughing and loving Armenia, even dreaming about Armenia makes a mother proud beyond words. Johnny stills speak of his visit to Armenia, and wants to return to Armenia to use his knowledge of medicine to aid our brothers and sisters.

A visit to Armenia is a lifelong gift that we can give to our children and our Homeland. The Birthright Armenia program provides this incredible gift, one that many of our children and their parents would not be able to afford individually. I urge our entire community to continue to support this worthwhile program. We can insure the future of Armenia and of our children by continuing to send them to our Homeland through this wonderful program.

Jacqueline ElChemmas
5784 Inkster Rd.
West Bloomfield, MI 48323

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