Homeless Gyumri Families Provided with Apartments

YEREVAN—In recent months, the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund provided apartments to many homeless families in Gyumri, Armenia. Through a program launched in 2014, the fund purchased 17 apartments; 12 families have already moved into their new homes. The apartments are completely renovated and furnished, and feature all modern amenities, including appliances.

The apartments were acquired with proceeds from a special telethon that was held jointly by the fund and the ARTN Shant Television station on Sept. 7, 2014. Contributions toward the purchase of the apartments were made by benefactors Antranik Baghdassarian, Vahe Karapetian, Haro Jordan, Haig Keledjian, and Samvel Balasanyan, as well as ARTN Shant Television. Through the initiative of Gilbert Moumdjian, the chairman of the fund’s German affiliate, the German-Armenian community also made contributions, which were used to provide homes to the families of Anna Sargsyan and Ruzanna Yeghogyan, both single mothers.

All of the program’s beneficiaries once lived in ramshackle huts, metal containers, or rooms in rundown, structurally unsound dormitories, often without access to gas, water, or electricity service. Today many of these families have become owners of clean, fully equipped apartments, where they can raise their children with dignity and in comfortable surroundings.

Previously, beneficiaries often lived without access to gas, water, or electricity service

“I’ve always done all I could so that my children wouldn’t go hungry, but couldn’t even dream of having a home one day,” Yeghogyan said tearfully.

On June 28, 2015, a second special telethon was held by the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund and ARTN Shant Television, with proceeds to be used for the purchase of additional apartments in the coming months. “Providing homeless Gyumri families with apartments will be an ongoing program,” said Ara Vardanyan, the executive director of the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund.