NEW BOOK HONOURS GEORGETOWN’S PAST; LAUNCH ON WEDNESDAY
Independent and Free Press
nment/article/63806
Jan 22 2009
Canada
It was almost 90 years ago that the first of the 100 orphan boys,
survivors of the Armenian genocide, got off the Radial Line train at
the Georgetown stop (now the TD Bank on Main St. S.) and were marched
two by two down Main St. to their new home in Canada.
The farm at the end of the road, which is now Cedarvale Park, was
bought specifically for them by the Armenian Relief Society with the
Canadian government’s blessing with the hope that the country would
gain more farmers. The original dormitory built for the boys is still
there, and so is the farmhouse.
These "Georgetown Boys" and their descendents never forgot their
journey here or what they had left behind. They also never forgot
the town and the country that welcomed them. It is a story that
could disappear from the history books, but thanks to author Marsha
Forchuk Skrypuch, it seems unlikely that it will be fading any time
soon. Skrypuch is an award-winning writer whose books are well-read
in schools around the country and in the U.S.
Her first book on the subject, Aram’s Choice tells the story of the
boys’ journey from Armenia to Canada, while Call Me Aram, the second,
is set completely in Georgetown (readers will recognize local landmarks
and landscape in the illustrations), and describes unique trials that
the boys had to face.
Skrypuch chose Georgetown to launch her latest book as she is
well aware of the loyalty that their family members have for this
community. Every time there is an event here about The Georgetown Boys,
the family members drive hours or fly in from faraway U.S. cities
to remember and reminisce about their fathers and grandfathers,
the times they shared and their hardships. This time will be no
exception. Family members of the boys are expected to attend the
national book launch for Call Me Aram on Wednesday, Jan. 28.
Skrypuch will be spending the day in town and in two locations. She’ll
be speaking to schoolchildren at the Cedarvale Community Centre in
the afternoon about the Armenian genocide, the writing of the book
and Georgetown’s role in receiving the boys.
She will also be on hand to meet and talk with the public at The
Freckled Lion Bookstore on Main St., from 4-6 p.m. and 7-9 p.m..
For more information, you may call The Freckled Lion at 905-873-1213
or e-mail at books@freckledlion.com.