Stanford Graduates Launch Annual Armenian Genocide Commemoration Fast For Armenia

Chris Guzelian and Alex Vartan are pleasantly punctual for a pair of busy Stanford graduate students. They are in my office, they tell me, because they have come up with a novel way of helping the children of Armenia.

The pair's plan is simple but powerful. They are calling for an international, day-long fast on Armenian Genocide Commemoration Day, Saturday, April 24, 2004. Participants are asked to donate the money that they would have spent on food that day to Armenian charities. With a combined 10 years at Stanford in the heart of Silicon Valley, Guzelian and Vartan understand the power of the Internet in uniting people across the globe. So they have built www.fastforarmenia.org, making the donation process as simple as buying a book from Amazon.com.

Guzelian explains how he and Vartan decided on a fast as the centerpiece of their charity movement, Fast for Armenia. "We knew we wanted to have a charity drive on [April] 24th and hit upon this idea to focus on aiding Armenia's youth. Fasting serves as a reminder of the abundance with which we Diaspora Armenians are blessed today, our ancestors' sacrifices and suffering, and the troubles Armenia's children contend with every day."

Vartan stresses that the website isn't just for collecting donations: "The website will allow us to accept credit card donations with ease - but more than that, it will offer detailed information about the projects and have downloadable marketing material so that anyone can help publicize this event at their school, church or place of work."

Donors can specify whether their funds will go to the Children of Armenia Fund's (COAF) Model Village project, or its Textbooks for Armenian Schoolchildren project. As beneficiaries of the inaugural Fast for Armenia, these specific projects were carefully selected because they are successfully meeting impoverished Armenians' basic needs.

COAF is a nonprofit 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization. The Model Village project is developing the basic infrastructure of Karakert, an agricultural Armenian village with 5,000 inhabitants; as well as programs that emphasize education, economic development and health care needs.

Dr. Garo Armen, the chairman and founder of COAF, explained to us that the next five years will be critical for the children and the youth of Armenia. "Without our help there is a substantial risk that they will lose all hope and face an uncertain future. The goal of the programs at COAF is to provide the basic infrastructure and training for these children so that they can learn, as well as receive essential and preventive medical care. COAF programs are designed to be sustainable to ensure the long-term viability of Armenia," Guzelian said. "This village on the Turkish border has no drinkable water, inadequate medical facilities, and crumbling schoolhouses. But because of COAF, spirits are high."

By improving Karakert, COAF is demonstrating that even the most destitute Armenian villages can be brought up to suitable standards of living, cost-efficiently. Vartan notes, "Already, trucks are delivering potable water and a new school is in the planning stages. But much more needs to be done. COAF has organized a local governing council and has asked them to prioritize their needs. The number one priority of the community was improving their schools - ahead of adding running water and bathrooms in homes."

The project's success is expected to motivate international aid organizations and donors to realize that the development of rural Armenia is both feasible and necessary. Once these programs have demonstrated success, COAF expects the formula to be repeated throughout rural parts of the country, which is critical for a self-sustaining Armenia.

During the soviet era Armenia was given special consideration because of its human and intellectual capital; since the collapse of the Soviet Union the absence of resources and structure has created an enormous void which risks the endangerment of this terrific people resource. Thus the next five years are critical in making certain that people's hope for a promising future is maintained and the only way to accomplish this is to make sure that there are substantive and sustainable efforts underway as soon as possible.

COAF's Textbooks for Armenian Children project delivers modern textbooks to Armenian schoolchildren in regions where few, if any, children have access to such materials. Guzelian and Vartan explain that the future of Armenia depends on its intellectual resources. These children will be the leaders, the artists, the scientists, and the businessmen that will sustain Armenia in the long term. Only $10 pays for a year's use of textbooks for one child. The Fast for Armenia drive will equip as many village schools with textbooks as your generosity will permit.

Vartan stresses that the key to Fast for Armenia's success is widespread grassroots participation, and he believes that Armenians and their friends will support it in impressive numbers.

Guzelian believes Fast for Armenia answers many common hopes of Armenians in a unified project. "Each year," he explains, "so many people make admirable efforts to get the public and world governments to remember the genocide. Every year we see progress in baby steps, and every year, we see so many Armenians and their supporters disappointed that their pleas have fallen on deaf ears. We wanted an outlet to constructively honor our ancestors and Fast for Armenia is it. It commemorates the genocide as fittingly as ever, in part because fasting requires self-sacrifice and devotion, which shows how strongly Armenians believe in the need for official genocide recognition. But equally important, the charity drive portion of Fast for Armenia translates to hope for Armenia's children and future.

"We believe everyone can and will participate in Fast for Armenia," continues Guzelian, tapping keenly on the table to emphasize his point. "Whether you fast, donate money, or volunteer, do something! If you have media connections, get them to report on Fast for Armenia, or on the projects it is supporting. Even children are encouraged to participate by, say, giving up their desserts or snacks. Get others, including non-Armenians, to fast. Involve your workplaces, schools, communities, churches and social organizations!"

In future years, Guzelian and Vartan plan to expand Fast for Armenia by allowing other proven Armenian charities to become fundraising recipients. "Any charitable organization that demonstrates it is contributing to the well-being of the Armenian people could potentially participate," says Vartan. "Fast for Armenia also wants to recruit matching patrons, who will pledge to support the drive by matching some fraction of its funds, dollar-for-dollar."

I am awed and amazed, and wonder why someone didn't think of this sooner. I offer a quick question to my grandparents in heaven, "Is our promise to 'never forget' being carried out to your satisfaction?" After speaking to these young men, I know my answer is an enthusiastic "Yes!" I am filled with pride and hope, and I pledge them my unwavering support and pray that you will, too.

As this ambitious pair of young Stanford graduates get up to leave, I am convinced that the schoolchildren of Armenia and the inhabitants of Karakert will have their dire conditions improved after April 24, and that the genocide's memory is being well guarded by this generation of young Armenians.

-Anahid Yeremian