Armenia Fund’s International Thanksgiving Day Telethon 2012
Thank you for your interest in Armenia Fund’s International Thanksgiving Day Telethon 2012 “Our Village”. Having become a Thanksgiving Day tradition for Armenians around the world, the Telethon will air from Los Angeles and be broadcast from coast to coast and internationally. Please scroll down to see the Telethon 2012 TV broadcast guide. If you live outside of our broadcast areas, please watch the Telethon webcast by visiting www.armeniafund.org on U.S. Thanksgiving Day.
Telethon 2012 Gallery
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Chairperson’s Message
Dear Supporters of Armenia Fund,
As you know, this year Armenians around the world are celebrating Armenia Fund’s 20th Anniversary. The organization was established in 1992 when Armenia, having just gained its independence was faced with the aftermath of the catastrophic earthquake: 50,000 dead, 130,000 injured and 500,000 homeless. In 1989, the official cost of reconstruction was estimated at 15 billion rubles — $50 billion in today’s dollars. Soviet empire just collapsed, burying with it what was left of an economy and impoverishing nearly every citizen of Armenia. Inflation hit 2,520% in 1992 alone. The Artsakh Liberation War entered its darkest days: Azeri tanks came within 20 miles of Stepanakert, which has turned into a ghost town. Our brothers and sisters were forced to live in basements under daily artillery shelling and air raids by Azeri bombers.
Here is an excerpt from an early 1993 Los Angeles Times article by international human rights activist, Yelena Bonner describing the winter of 1992: “Armenia today reminds me of Leningrad in 1941-43, when it was besieged by Hitler’s army for 900 days. The bread ration is less than half a pound per person a day. There is no electricity, television, radio, newspapers. Telephones aren’t working. Homes have no heat or hot water. Garbage hasn’t been collected all winter–in some places mounds are four stories high. Refugees are living in freezing metal cisterns formerly used to store gasoline. Packs of hungry dogs roam the streets–people arm themselves with sticks, and the weak are afraid to go out at all. It’s impossible to send packages or wire money to Yerevan, the capital, and there is no regularly scheduled air or train service.”
These were the conditions, under which a bold experiment in Armenian practical unity, called Armenia Fund, began. The idea was to bring together the largest Diaspora-based Armenian humanitarian organizations, religious institutions, political parties, as well as prominent individuals around the world and the highest representatives of Armenia’s and Artsakh’s governments with one goal in mind: survival, longevity and long-term development of the newly independent Republics of Armenia and Artsakh. The Pan-Armenian organization was to be strictly non-political and non-denominational.
To everyone’s surprise the experiment worked: since that day in 1992, Armenia Fund has implemented well over 1,000 large-scale humanitarian and infrastructure-development projects totaling $250,000,000 dollars donated by more than 250,000 Armenian families living in every corner of the world. Together, we have built or renovated 296 miles of roads, 175 miles of water treatment and supply networks, 90 miles of natural gas lines, 230 school and kindergartens, 424 residential units and houses, 40 hospitals and health care centers, 24 cultural centers and sport facilities and supported countless humanitarian, educational, cultural and scientific projects.
I say “THANK YOU” to you as without you all of this wouldn’t be possible.
Without your participation we might have lost Artsakh.
Without your contribution 100,000 more Armenians might have left Armenia.
I call on you today to make another tax-deductible donation as we embark on a new campaign to ensure long-term development of Armenian villages. The Telethon this year will be raising funds to build new Community Centers – multi-purpose structures housing a health care center, a library, a modern computer room with internet access, an auditorium for training’s, town hall meetings and cultural events, as well as a village administration and accounting office.
No donation is too small and every dollar counts as our strength is in our unity.
I thank you in advance for your generosity and care.
Sincerely,
Ara Aghishian, Esq.
Chairman of the Board
Armenia Fund, U.S. Western Region
Did you know that Armenia Fund also accepts bequests, real estate property, land, precious metals, stocks, bonds and other securities. Please contact our office at 818-243-6222 for more information.
Commercial Spots
ARMENIA FUND TELETHON 2012:
A TOAST WORTHY
OF OUR HOMELAND
ARMENIA FUND TELETHON 2012:
20 YEARS OF SERVICE
TO THE HOMELAND
ARMENIA FUND TELETHON 2012:
FOR YOU ARMENIA
ARMENIA FUND TELETHON 2012:
INGA & ANOUSH – HAY HAY
Broadcast Information
I want to support Armenia Fund.
ArmeniaFund places great emphasis on transparency and accountability. We aggressively document, monitor and share our work with the world. We want to see more of our community members throughout the diaspora involved and we need your help.
When you give money to ArmeniaFund, you become an important and life-changing member of the ArmeniaFund community. You directly effect the people and the future of Armenia. From building roads to building schools, together we can rebuild, refurbish and revitalize our motherland.
I GIVE BECAUSE…
“I Care About The Health and Prosperity of Our Homeland’s Children”
I GIVE BECAUSE…
“That’s How My Culture and Heritage of Caring and Supporting Those In Need Has Raised Us”
I GIVE BECAUSE…
“Saving Lives Starts With This Small Donation For Our Country”
