Seeing Armenia from the Inside Out

If you try to find Gomk on a map chances are you won't. Residents in Yerevan and even nearby towns like Yegheknatsor will only look at you with confusion when you ask where it is. As a Birthright Armenia volunteer with the Youth and Community Action Program (YCAP) I was able to discover Gomk this summer. The experience has forever shifted my perspective on development in Armenia and has deeply inspired me to work towards improving the lives of those in Armenia who need it most.

If you leave the cafes, arts and culture, and nightlife of Yerevan and head south, stopping just nine kilometers from the Azeri border you will find Gomk. It is a former Azeri village of roughly three hundred people, most of whom are refugees from Baku. My assignment as a volunteer there was to help implement a community action plan.

On my first day in the village the YCAP staff conducted a workshop to assess the village's needs and develop a one-year work plan. When the staff members left and I remained in the village I found myself completely overwhelmed by the gravity of the issues the community wanted to tackle. How were we, I thought, going to do any of this in the isolated village of Gomk, with no internet, unreliable phone connections, no sponsors, no supplies, and no access to information. With the nearest town a bumpy half hour taxi ride away, I was completely cut off from all of the resources I am used to relying on to work.

As I slowly overcame this initial feeling, I realized that what I needed lay not outside, but in the village itself. As stated eloquently by Gomk's mayor, "Armenia's development does not start in Yerevan, it starts in the villages." Living with the villagers I learned that they already knew exactly what needed to be done to improve their conditions and that they were willing to work to accomplish their goals. More importantly, I learned that I could actually help. As a Diasporan Armenian I could make connections and serve as an advocate for the village once I left. I could help them overcome their isolation by providing them with information on other organizations they could work with. Additionally, I could help them more clearly articulate their opinions so that YCAP can better meet their needs. If we worked together, we had all the resources necessary to make a lasting positive impact in Gomk.

Leaving Gomk I was told by one of the villagers, "Don't forget us. We are Armenian too." I believe my volunteer experience has made it impossible for me to ever think of Armenia in the same way again. If we in the Diaspora hope to help Armenia's development we cannot forget that Armenia does not end in Yerevan. We have an important role to play in the development of the regions and volunteering provides us a unique opportunity to do so. Our work in Armenia can be highly rewarding, while at the same time having far-reaching impacts, if only we take the time to get on the bumpy road, head out, and get ready for a challenge.

Veronica Siranosian (USA)
Birthright Armenia, Fall 2006