PRESS RELEASE
The Genocide Education Project
51 Commonwealth Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94118
(415) 264-4203
info@GenocideEducation.org
www.GenocideEd ucation.com
Contact: Raffi Momjian, raffim@genocideeducation.org
RICHARD KLOIAN LAID TO REST
Established Armenian Genocide Resource Center
_07_2010.htm
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, May 5, 2010 – Richard Kloian, who established and
directed the Armenian Genocide Resource Center, was laid to rest today
in the presence of family and friends, at Rolling Hills Memorial Park in
El Sobrante, California.
Kloian, 73, passed away on May 1st after a massive stroke. Funeral
services were conducted by Reverend Father Hovel Ohanyan of Oakland’s
St. Vartan church. Roxanne Makasdjian, Chairperson of the Bay Area
Armenian National Committee, spoke about Kloian’s major contribution to
the work of organizations pursuing recognition of the Armenian Genocide,
to the field of genocide studies and to the general public understanding
of the Armenian Genocide.
Raffi Momjian, Director of The Genocide Education Project, for which
Kloian acted as advisor, read a few of the many comments sent by
scholars expressing their remembrances about Richard. Israel Charny,
Executive Director of the Institute on the Holocaust and Genocide in
Jerusalem, wrote, "I consider him a GIANT on behalf of Armenian Genocide
recognition and memory. His devotion to his work in enabling education
and memory about the Armenian Genocide was immense."
Dennis Papazian, Professor Emeritus (Retired) and founding director of
the Armenian Research Center at the University of Michigan-Dearborn
wrote, "He was a man dedicated to the truth and willing to gather the
evidence for all to see. He was a true gentleman, and hated no one.
His only desire was to educate and enlighten. He believed that
enlightened people would do the right thing. He had a positive outlook.
He is irreplaceable. May he rest in peace and may his family be
comforted."
For a full obituary about Richard Kloian, see:
ard-kloian-73-pioneering-armenian-genocide-educato r-passes-away
Below is a transcript of the funeral service remarks by Roxanne Makasdjian.
It’s hard for me to accept that I’m standing here this morning, to say
goodbye to Richard. Richard was someone who you never wanted to believe
would not be here one day. He was so much younger than his years, and he
had such endless energy. Although on many occasions I wondered how his
work would be carried on after him, I didn’t really think this time
would come.
I met Richard almost immediately after I began volunteering for the
Armenian National Committee when I moved here in the 1980’s. He had just
published his book, "The Armenian Genocide: News Accounts from the
American Press, 1915-1922." This was truly a landmark publication,
because the collection of these New York Times and other articles was
not only an useful reference book for researchers, but for groups like
the ANC, it was then and still is the perfect public information tool to
make the case for recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Richard had done
it all by himself, spending endless hours at UC Berkeley, going through
pages and pages of newspaper microfilm.
When we initiated a committee to help teachers include the Armenian
Genocide in their coursework, all roads led to Richard Kloian, who had
been a key resource for teachers for years. Getting to know him, I soon
realized that he had an unstoppable passion and talent for bringing
documentation about the Armenian Genocide to the broad public. I began
getting a stream of e-mails from him, with the most interesting
articles, reports, first-hand accounts. Sometimes, it came so fast and
furiously, I had to stick them in a folder I called "stuff from
Richard," until I could make time to film them all properly.
Richard once told me how this passion of his first bloomed. It was when
his father died in 1976. Richard discovered his father’s diary, which
told a harrowing tale of genocide survival. It was then that Richard’s
life work turned irreversibly to the Armenian Genocide.
His new interest filled his evenings after work. Soon, his mission
became a full-time volunteer effort, bringing to light this `forgotten
history.’
By 1997, he had established the Armenian Genocide Resource Center.
Through the AGRC, Richard has single-handedly collected a vast amount of
documentation on the Armenian Genocide, helped get long-lost memoirs and
documents published, and has developed many useful materials for helping
locate and acquire historical and current works. He also found films
about the Armenian Genocide from around the world and got permission to
reproduce them for the general public. As many of you know, one of his
most recent labors of love was restoring and editing the only surviving
segment of the 1919 silent Hollywood film, Ravished Armenia.
Richard’s perseverance and drive were incomparable. His work was an
everyday act of courage because each day, by himself, and without any
compensation, he fought the powerful forces of "forgetting." Not only
did his work fight historical revisionism, it served to enlighten
educators and politicians alike, who encounter Turkey’s denial of the
Armenian Genocide regularly. His work has helped broaden the discussion
of genocide studies, because so many non-Armenians sought out his
materials and his vast knowledge of historical resources.
But to characterize Richard only in terms of his contributions to
Armenian Genocide education would not give the true picture. Born and
raised in Detroit, Michigan, one of 5 brothers, Richard, whose Armenian
name was Diran, was an extraordinary Renaissance man. He had an avid
interest in science, in music, in photography. He was an active member
of the Astronomical Society in Detroit, where he organized public events
and where he built his first deep space telescope with Dr. Donaldson
Craig of Wayne State University. He studied French and comparative
literature, and as an accomplished photographer, he was among the first
in Detroit to capture on film the early phases of growth that
revolutionized the Detroit skyline. And as a professional musician, he
played in Detroit’s Latin and jazz orchestras. I’m told it was while
playing music that he met his wife of 42 years, Antonia, and we all owe
such a debt of gratitude that Antonia gave Richard the space to pursue
his passion and give so much to the world.
The list of his accomplishments is so impressive, yet what I keep
thinking about is Richard’s sweet and gentle demeanor, his genuine
kindness, and his pleasing smile. Thank you, Richard, for brightening
and enriching our lives, for teaching us, for showing us the way.
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The Genocide Education Project is a nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3)
organization that assists educators in teaching about human rights and
genocide, particularly the Armenian Genocide, by developing and
distributing instructional materials, providing access to teaching
resources and organizing educational workshops.
[PICTURE CAPTION] chard Diran Kloian (1937-2010)