Obituary: Albert Sarkissian (1917-2014)

Albert Sarkissian was born on Feb. 12, 1917, in an Armenian community that was then in Russian Ashkabad. Albert was the son of Shooshanik Hovsepian (born in Shushi) and Vaghinak Sarkissian (born in Tabriz). Albert and his sister, Seda, were orphaned at a young age. Although they lived with family, they needed to learn to fend for themselves very early in life. Albert joined the army at age 16 and served as a communications specialist. He spent most of his childhood in Iran where he met his future wife, Lena Aganoor. Albert and Lena were married on Aug. 6, 1943 and were inseparable partners for 65 years. They had three children—Susan, Sofia, and Leo. Collectively there are seven grandchildren, several of whom are married: Susan and Ray Bagdasarian, with children, Laura and Greg Srebotnik and Robert and Karen Bagdasarian, and great-grandchildren Nicole and Matthew; Sofie and Marv Gough, with children, Kristen and Thomas Aikman, and great grandson, Noah; Greg Gough; Alissa and Michael Ray, and great grandsons Xavier and Xander; and Leo and Mary Sarkissian, with children Heather and Matt Saforrian and Hailey Sarkissian. Albert worked diligently his entire life, always taking advantage of educational opportunities, even when working full-time. The opportunity to further his family’s and his personal education was a driving factor in his decision to move to New York City in 1958 with his wife and three young children. He believed strongly in education. In New York, he attended RCA institute while working full-time, so that he could advance himself as an electronics engineer. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the New York Institute of Technology and later, as a graduate, was an instructor at the successor to the RCA Institute. Albert served as vice president and plant manager of an electronics firm in Queens, N.Y., for many years. In the early 1970’s, he established and became the president of Hybrid Semiconductors, Inc. The U.S government was one of the company’s primary customers. In retirement in the 1990’s, he and his wife left New York to live close to the Armenian community in Watertown, Mass. There they attended many events and seminars hosted by the church, the Armenian Library and Museum of America (ALMA), the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR), the Armenian Cultural Foundation (ACF), and other organizations. Although his career was in electronics, in retirement Albert returned to literature and journalism in his volunteer and personal activities. As a “Researcher of Armenian Studies,” he authored and published a book titled, Contemplations, Free Masons and British Anti-Armenian Activities in 2003. He sent copies of the book to Armenian libraries and groups across the world. For years he was active in the Armenian church, serving on the board of St. Illuminator’s Cathedral in New York and attending many church national assemblies. Albert was a member of St. Stephan’s Armenian Church, active in the Armenian Revisionary Federation (ARF), and was a volunteer at ALMA and the Hairenik newspaper. He felt strongly about Armenian independence and Armenian education. He and his wife traveled to Armenia twice in later years. Albert always had time for his family. One of his major roles was “chauffer,” dropping off and picking up his children, wife, and sister-in-law often on a daily basis. He was protective of his daughters and would not want them driving with friends (so, he would often drive them to the mall or the movies, and wait in the car if need be, reading or doing his engineering homework). In addition to his family, he was fortunate to have many good friends, both from the Armenian community and work. He was a man of strong principles, reflected in his commitment to his Armenian heritage, his adopted country, his family, church, and friends.

Obituary: Albert Sarkissian (1917-2014)

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