PRESS RELEASE
BIRTHRIGHT ARMENIA
Contact: Linda Yepoyan
Email: [email protected]
July 8, 2004
BIRTHRIGHT ARMENIA KICKS OFF ITS FIRST SUMMER IN ARMENIA
Yerevan, Armenia – Young diasporans venturing out on journeys of
self-discovery are multiplying in the homeland. They are here in
Armenia to participate in a multitude of volunteer, cultural and
internship programs, representing many of the existing organizations
within our diasporan communities. In addition to their ethnicity, a
group of 40 such youth from different walks of life have one additional
thing in common with each other. They are all participants of
Birthright Armenia/Depi Hayk, a new initiative experiencing its first
year of operations in Armenia this summer.
Birthright Armenia was established to strengthen ties between diasporan
and homeland youth by creating the right conditions for young adults to
best connect with their collective past and commit themselves to our
nation’s future. This new organization is building on the initiatives
of established diasporan institutions that offer youth programs in
Armenia, to make the homeland experience all that it can be. The four
parameters that define each participant’s requirements for qualification
under the Birthright Armenia program’s acronym QUEST include: public
service, language training, leadership development, and continuing
involvement.
The 40 Birthright Armenia/Depi Hayk 2004 summer participants are
representatives of seven organizations: Armenian Christian Youth
Organization of America (ACYOA), Armenian Youth Federation (AYF),
Armenian Volunteer Corps (AVC), Armenian Assembly of America (AAA),
Armenian Medical Association (AMA), Armenian Students’ Association-NY
(ASA), and the Land and Culture Organization (LCO).
As part of their QUEST, (qualified experiences in service and training),
each participant is fulfilling 30-40 hours per week of rewarding
community service through internships or volunteerism, all the while
garnering valuable work experience that will enhance their future career
tracks. Volunteer placements this summer include exciting opportunities
within the private and public sectors, as well as various government
offices, some of which include: Nork Marash Hospital, Ministries of
Foreign Affairs and Health, Zadik Orphanage, Vem radio station, Council
of Europe, Armenian Medical Association, Armenian Tree Project,
Zangagadoon NGO in Vanadzor, Youth Christian Movement, Spendarian House
Museum, Ameria Consulting, and the Armenian Tourism Development Agency.
In addition to providing travel fellowships that cover the roundtrip
airfare of each participant, their QUESTS continue with Birthright
Armenia/Depi Hayk supplementing the community service aspect of their
experience with an action-packed line-up of activities including a
thorough in-country orientation, one-on-one Eastern Armenian language
instruction, weekly `havaks’ and excursions, and a forum series. These
support services provided by Birthright Armenia are designed to provide
a more in-depth immersion experience for those who are interested in
gaining an understanding of our current homeland’s situation, people,
history, and opportunities for involvement – all contributing to a more
meaningful, life-changing journey of self-discovery of what it means to
be a diasporan at this point and time in our history.
`Each of the participants is building a base of new relationships
through their work environment, host families, and interactions with
local counterparts, and trying to process how they will bridge these
newfound relationships with their lives back in their local communities.
We can see the wheels turning in each of their minds, and find the
amount of energy, emotion, and identity seeking within them refreshing’,
says Linda Yepoyan, U.S. based executive director for Birthright
Armenia/Depi Hayk. `I believe that the words of one of our participants,
Sonia Shahrigian from CA, who is an AVC volunteer, encapsulates the
experience better than I ever could’:
`Before I arrived in Armenia, I tried not to get my hopes up. I had
wanted to come to Armenia for years, and finally, the time was ripe!
After talking about Hayasdan, the “homeland,” my whole life, sometimes
placing it upon a pedestal, I tried not to have high expectations before
my departure from the U.S. Although I’ve been here for a short time,
and although my stay will last only 2 months, I can confidently say that
I’ve never felt more at home anywhere else. Everything feels so natural,
despite my slowly progressing Armenian skills. Since my arrival, I’ve
met so many wonderful, kind people who are often as excited about me
being here as I am. Now, I know why some Armenians are afraid to come
here; they are afraid that they might never want to leave, and might
have trouble picking up the roots they have planted elsewhere. But the
deepest, strongest root is deeply buried in Armenian soil, which is why
so many of us feel like we are coming “back” when we come to Armenia,
even if we’ve never physically been here before’.
`This, our first year of providing services in Armenia, is the pilot
test for much larger numbers of volunteers to sponsor in the near
future. Next year we are counting on over 100 participants, and then
doubling that number every consecutive year to truly increase the number
of youths connecting with the homeland in meaningful ways,’ Yepoyan
concludes.
For those who are interested in learning more about Birthright
Armenia/Depi Hayk, please visit the Web site at
Birthright Armenia’s mission is to strengthen ties between the homeland
and diasporan youth by affording them an opportunity to be a part of
Armenia’s daily life and to contribute to Armenia’s development through
work, study and volunteer experiences, while developing a renewed sense
of Armenian identity. This is accomplished by supporting and
complementing the initiatives of existing diasporan organizations that
offer youth programs in Armenia, and encouraging them to expand their
offerings in depth and breath. Birthright Armenia assists with travel
fellowships, language instruction, in-country seminars, orientation and
excursions in exchange for community service in Armenia.