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History
Hayastan All-Armenian Fund, along with its nineteen worldwide
affiliates, was established in the early 1990s to assist the
development of the Republic of Armenia by uniting the resources
of Armenian communities around the world. The endeavor was
based on the idea of “national giving”- Armenians around the
world would collectively extend financial help to their newly
independent ancestral homeland to rebuild the shattered infrastructure
and ensure the survival and prosperity of Armenia.
Political upheavals of the 20th century forced Armenians
to flock to California from numerous countries around the
world: from modern day Turkey and Armenia after the Armenian
Genocide of 1915 and the fall of the First Republic in 1920;
from the Middle East in the 1970s; from Iran in the 1980s
and from Armenia in the 1990s. Having established within the
American society, Armenians gradually formed cultural, religious,
and political organizations.
Since California has the largest concentration of Armenians
outside of Armenia (anywhere from 500,000 to 700,000), the
Hayastan All-Armenia Fund established an office in the Los
Angeles metropolitan region to service the Armenian-American
community west of the Mississippi.
On March 29 1994, Armenia Fund, Inc. was officially incorporated
within the state of California by Secretary of State Tony
Miller. Immediately following its incorporation, the Internal
Revenue Service granted Armenia Fund with a 501 (c) (3) status.
With this status, Armenia Fund Inc. is exempt from income
taxes and thus all donations made to the organization are
tax-deductible as delineated by law.
Berj Boyajian spearheaded the efforts early on by rallying
major Armenian-American organizations and churches for resources
needed to effectively establish an office. Mr. Boyajian set
a firm foundation that enabled the organization to grow and
strive on a daily basis.
Following the end of his tenure, Rafi Ourfalian, Esq. was
elected the chairman in 1995. Under Ourfalian’s leadership,
Armenia Fund embarked on original methods of fundraising:
via the Telethon. Building on the merits of Ourfalian’s leadership,
Zaven Khanjian followed in 1999. After two years of successful
growth, Mr. Tomik Alexanian led the organization from 2001-2003.
Since March 2004, Armenia Fund has been led by Maria Mehranian,
the first women to be elected to the position. Maria Mehranian
is also the Managing Partner and Chief Financial Officer of
Cordoba Corporation, a major urban planning and engineering
firm based in Los Angeles.
As it stands today, Armenia Fund, Inc. has greatly expanded
its presence in the states west of the Mississippi. With active
chapters in Fresno and San Francisco, Armenia Fund continues
to grow in communities further away from Los Angeles. Most
recently, Armenia Fund’s support base grew larger, thanks
to Armenian-American communities in Colorado, Minnesota, Missouri,
Nevada, Texas, Utah and Washington.
After the decade of combined efforts, Armenia Fund has become
a premier fundraising organization that rallies the resources
of the entire Diaspora and directs them to Armenia and Karabakh
for humanitarian relief and infrastructure development. Armenia
Fund and its affiliates have been able to raise over $120
million over the last decade. Continuing on this trend, the
global family of Armenia Fund successfully raise over $11.5
million during its Telethon 2004 in November. The funds raised
more than doubled 2003’s total breaking an all-time fundraising
record in the Armenian Diaspora.
Project by project, village by village, Armenia Fund, Inc.
together with a support base of over 35,000 Armenians in states
west of the Mississippi, is ensuring a brighter future for
the people of Armenia and Karabakh.
Armenia Fund, Inc., is a non-profit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt corporation
established in 1994 to facilitate large-scale humanitarian
and infrastructure development assistance to Armenia and Nagorno
Karabakh. Armenia Fund, Inc. is the U.S. Western Region affiliate
of “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund.
Tax ID# 95-4485698
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