IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Junior Achievement of Armenia
4/6 Saryan street,
Yerevan 375009, Armenia
Tel: (+374 – 1) 54.49.96
E-mail: jaa@arminco.com
Website:

June 2, 2004

CAFESJIAN, JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT, ORRAN, ARMENIA TV TEAM UP TO CELEBRATE
CHILDREN’S DAY

Yerevan–“Children for Children” was the theme on June 1 at the
Gerard L. Cafesjian Center for the Arts, known here as the Cascade,
where International Children’s Day celebrations and lessons about
love and benevolence went hand in hand.

The festivities began in the early evening with circus acts,
puppet shows, and dance and song performances from the Karakert
Village Dance Troupe as well as many other groups from across the
Republic. Thousands of children participated in games, activities,
and spontaneous performances throughout the night.

The children, their families, and visiting guests and dignitaries
were treated to a live late-night concert, with the country’s most
popular singers such as Nune Yesayan, Shushan Petrosian, Alla Levonian,
Arthur Ispirian, and many others filling the air with Armenian song
and soul. A spectacular fireworks show concluded a festival that was
unprecedented in its scope and dimension.

The real success, however, was in the message of the day. Organized by
the Cafesjian Family Foundation, Junior Achievement of Armenia, Orran
Benevolent Union, and Armenia TV with the intention of promoting the
spirit of giving, the partners reached out to Armenia’s most promising
group of children: Junior Achievers.

Junior Achievement of Armenia, an affiliate of Junior Achievement
worldwide, assists high school students in learning about all aspects
of running a business. From marketing to production and distribution,
these students study and put into practice the ABC’s of free market
economics.

While the nation celebrated one of its happiest days of the year,
Junior Achievers decided in their turn to help other children
in need, and in particular the young beneficiaries of Orran, an
organization that assists vagrant children. As part of the Children’s
Day celebration along the Cascade, over thirty of the most active
Junior Achievement classrooms from Armenia’s schools decided to hold
a public sale of hand-made goods and wares and to donate all profits
for the day to charity organizations devoted to children.

Armine K. Hovannisian, executive director of Junior Achievement of
Armenia and founder of Orran, summed up the meaning of the day:
“We wanted the children to have a great festival and to enjoy
themselves. We also wanted to create the opportunity for them to show
off the results of their many months of labor and to make a public
statement about caring and helping those who are less fortunate.”

What turned out to be a festive occasion with thousands of smiling
children was in fact a lesson of benevolence which needs to be
practiced not only in Yerevan but throughout the Armenian world.

For more information, visit the Cafesjian Family Foundation at
; Junior Achievement of Armenia at ;
and Orran Children’s Center [or Orran Benevolent Union] at