HAVERHILL, Mass.—As the last remaining Armenian Genocide survivor in Haverhill, Jennie Vartabedian wears her history—and longevity—with pride.
A citywide celebration took place in her honor April 8, hosted by the Hannah Duston Nursing Home where she has resided the past three years after spending most of her life in Somerville.
City and state officials were high in their praise for the 97-year-old, who witnessed the genocide at the age of 3 in Dikranagert.
Among those paying tribute were Mayor James Fiorentini and State Rep. Brian Dempsey.
The event was organized by her son Tom and his wife Nancy in conjunction with Armenian Genocide Month throughout the Merrimack Valley.
Jennie is among seven remaining survivors in her area and had been attending commemorations up until two years ago.
She had been an active member of the Holy Cross Armenian Catholic Church in Cambridge and was always known for her charity to Armenian causes. She and her late husband Edward operated a Somerville luncheonette for 30 years.
Following his death in 1975, the restaurant was sold and she began work for the city of Somerville as an assistant in the medical clinic. Jennie was well past the octogenarian age when she finally retired.
For the next 10 years, she drove herself to the gym daily and served as a role model for people of her generation.
The joy in her life these days is her family, which includes five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
“Whatever your life, make sure you have room for God and the church,” she told the gathering. “God must have had a reason for sparing me.”
Tom Vartabedian
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