FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Evelyn Boyajian
ACYOA Dallas
Sports Weekend Committee
sportsweekend@acyoadallas.com
2004 Annual General Assembly and Sports Weekend heading down to the Lone
Star State
Dallas, TX – May 24, 2004 – For the first time ever, the ACYOA of St. Sarkis
Armenian Church in Dallas, TX will be hosting the Annual ACYOA General
Assembly and Sports Weekend. With over a year in planning invested, the
appeal of this year’s event has grown above and beyond its usual borders.
Having the added benefit of a centralized location, members as well as
clergy from both the Eastern and Western Diocese will be in attendance
throughout the entire weekend.
There are many firsts this year. Some of these include online registration
for workshops, sports and other events through the Dallas ACYOA website. A
choice of payment method, including check by mail, PayPal or online credit
card is also available. Hotel and Airline reservations are accessible with
special group discount codes posted on the site.
The event officially kicks off Thursday, May 27 with a welcome meeting and
reception for the delegates at the Hilton Hotel. The General Assembly
delegates meeting will continue throughout the day Friday at the Biblical
Arts Center, which will feature a 30 minute laser light show on the largest
oil painting of the Pentecost. The evening will include music and dancing at
the Al Amir Restaurant which features a great Mediterranean atmosphere.
Sports competitions will begin Saturday morning and continue through Sunday
afternoon at Jesuit College Prep located within 5 minutes walking distance
of the hotel. Sports registration has been overwhelmingly high this year
with over 37 teams from 12 parishes playing basketball, volleyball, soccer
and tug-of-war. Track and other individual events such as ping pong and
tavloo (backgammon) will also be taking place.
For those who aren’t participating in sports, or might have downtime in
between their games, special workshop programming and a clergy discussion
panel will be offered throughout Saturday. The day will begin with a visit
to the Children’s Medical Center followed by a packed schedule of speakers
discussing hot topics such as Marriage vs Civil Union, “The Passion of the
Christ”. The day will include presentations from other Armenian
organizations such as AGBU and the Armenian Assembly as well. A Gift Hygiene
Pack Assembly event will also be available for anyone to stop by and help.
These gift packs will consist of basic hygiene items, such as toothbrush and
toothpaste, which will be sent to orphanages in Armenia after the event.
Saturday evening will be held at the Dallas World Aquarium with live music
featuring the Aravod Ensemble. Participants will have the chance to walk
through a rain forest and see, as well as learn about, live animals from
around the world, some which are on the endangered species list.
Sunday Badarak service will be held at the St. Sarkis Armenian Church
followed by an Alumni Luncheon. In the late afternoon, an exhibition game
will take place with the Dallas parishioner’s soccer team challenging the
ACYOA soccer champions. In the evening, a formal dinner/dance ball will take
place at the hotel. This event will be open to Dallas community members and
will feature Philly Kef Band opening for Aram Asatryan. Following this, DJ’s
Nick & Jake Terkenian will provide entertainment at the after-hours event.
The farewell picnic will be held Monday at the church.
On behalf of the entire Dallas Sports Weekend Committee, we want to thank
everyone for the opportunity of hosting this year’s event and want to say
“Come on down, y’all !!”
For more information: or
Contact: sportsweekend@acyoadallas.com
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