All-Armenian Fund Sponsors Construction of Sasunik Kindergarten

With financial support from its British affiliate, the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund has started building a two-story kindergarten in Sasunik, a village in Armenia’s Aragatsotn region. The project is co-sponsored by the Sasunik municipality. Construction crews are currently laying the foundations of the kindergarten, which will accommodate up to 90 children.

Sasunik’s old, run-down kindergarten has remained closed since 1998, which has forced some residents to send their children to the kindergarten nearby Ashtarak. Yet even this option has not been feasible for most. “Very few families can take their children to and from the kindergarten in Ashtarak or afford the high tuition,” said Sasunik Mayor Arman Margaryan.

As he went on to discuss some of the infrastructure and other issues facing his village, Margaryan said that among the community’s most urgent needs are the construction of an irrigation network and the renovation of its roads. On the plus side, the mayor added, there have been 23 weddings in Sasunik since the beginning of 2014, which suggests that residents are opting to stay put and continuing to raise their families there.

Incorporated within Sasunik is the village of Karin, which is populated by refugees from Baku. There are about 4,000 residents in Sasunik. The main occupations are viticulture and animal breeding, with more than 100 residents employed at Sasunik’s Armenia wine factory.

The financial support of the Armenian community of Britain has made possible the renovation of the delivery and surgery departments of the maternity ward at Yerevan’s Surb Astvatsamayr Medical Center (2009), the pediatric department of the Kapan Medical Center (2011), and Yerevan’s Shengavit district boarding kindergarten (2012). British-Armenian support has also provided more than 20 schools in Armenia’s border villages with furniture and school supplies.