On Feb. 9, Armen Aroyan, who has tailored more than 75 Armenian Heritage tours for more than 1,200 pilgrims to Historic Armenia, was honored for his achievements and dedication at a tribute organized and co-sponsored by the Ararat-Eskijian Museum (AEM) and the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR). The program took place at the Sheen Chapel on the grounds of the Ararat Home Nursing Facility in Mission Hills, Calif., and was followed by a dinner reception in the AEM.
Armen Aroyan
Martin Eskijian, chairman of the Ararat-Eskijian Museum, welcomed the audience of more than 220 enthusiastic attendees, and introduced the master of ceremonies, Bruce Roat, a Southern California Board member of NAASR. The Ani String Quartet then began with selections from Gomidas, Khatchaturian, and Berberian, including “Tzitzernak.”
Prof. Richard Hovannisian reviewed the history of the confiscation and redistribution of Armenian properties during and after the deportations and massacres. The Armenian Genocide, he said, was unique among the 20th-century genocides as its survivors could not return to inhabit their historic homes; if they attempted, they were invariably arrested and sent back. Prior to the 1980’s, no non-Muslim could by law venture to the interior of Turkey, even if they were Turkish citizens of Istanbul. Hovannisian gave examples of how difficult it was for Armenians to visit eastern Turkey in the early 1980’s, when some travelers had their cameras and film as well as their luggage confiscated by Turkish security personnel, and finally had to leave.
Armen Aroyan’s first expedition into the interior of Turkey was in 1987 to Antep, his own ancestral land.
Armen Aroyan’s first expedition into the interior of Turkey was in 1987 to Antep, his own ancestral land. He dealt in a low-key manner with the Turkish inhabitants and won them over with his smile while he searched for remnants of old Armenian homes and churches. From that point on, he extended his scope by discovering the small villages that his pilgrims yearned to visit. More than anything, he enjoyed seeing the joy and pleasure in the eyes of the people he took there—the descendants of genocide survivors—as they experienced the life-altering event of walking where their parents and grandparents had once walked. Hovannisian ended his talk by thanking Aroyan for having enriched so many people’s lives.
The next presentation was an extensive slide show by Roupen Berberian, a four-time traveler with Aroyan, accompanied with his historical commentary. There was also coverage of Aroyan’s genealogy, family influences, and education in Cairo, Egypt, and his immigration to the United States, where he furthered his education in electrical engineering at the University of Souther California. Aroyan worked for McDonnell Douglas Aerospace for 25 years. He also guided many scholars, authors, religious leaders, and documentarians from different countries on their trips to Turkey.
Anne Elizabeth Redgate, a historian from Newcastle University in England, made the long trip specifically to be present on this occasion. She had traveled with Aroyan and commented on how he had fulfilled the realization of so many pilgrims’ dreams by taking them safely to the heart of historic Armenia. Redgate had studied Armenian history for a long time, but being given a chance to connect with the people and being “a beneficiary of Armen’s magic” meant a great deal to her.
Bruce Roat acknowledged the many messages of congratulations that were received from pilgrims who were not able to travel to the tribute event. He read three testimonials, one by Lucille Hamparian, and another from Jack Bournazian, who compared Aroyan to “an Armenian locksmith,” who “came into our lives and fitted a personal key for each of us, unlocking the door to our personal pasts.” In a third testimonial, Nancy Kolligian, a former chairman of NAASR, who has worked closely with Aroyan and Hovannisian in organizing several NAASR Armenian Heritage Tours, commended Aroyan for “the importance you have always placed in making each traveler feel special and complete in their personal quests.” She said her visit to Hussenig in historic Armenia was “one of the most memorable and emotional experiences in my life.”
Martin Eskijian presented Aroyan with an award of recognition from the Ararat-Eskijian Museum, a sculpture of an Armenian mother protecting her child during the deportation. The NAASR tribute was given by Southern California Board member Dr. Gregory Ketabgian, who presented Aroyan with a symbolic silver bowl designed by Michael Aram representing Noah’s Ark resting on top of Mt. Ararat. “Although British ships could not climb Mt. Ararat, Armen was symbolically able to do it with his vans,” Ketabgian said.
Aroyan thanked the organizers of the event and explained the “providential chain of events” that led to his passion for organizing tours through historic Armenia. He described some of the Armenians he had discovered still living in remote corners of the country. He was inspired by how they were initially reluctant but, after relaxing, were able to sing the sharagans, recite the Havadamk, the Armenian alphabet, and so on. He explained what he calls the “King Arshak phenomenon,” the transformation process he has witnessed in pilgrims “reminiscent of the legend of the forlorn, depressed, and subservient Armenian King Arshak II in captivity, who would miraculously regain his boldness and strength when he stepped on the soil brought from the homeland.”
Aroyan also thanked all of the pilgrims who travelled with him and emphasized that he had learned much from them and their family histories. “The pilgrims,” he said, “gave me the opportunity to see our homeland through their eyes, with the very wonder and awe of the first time—every time. Together, we turned a haunted memory into a tangible reality.”
He explained the importance to him of the poem “My Death” by Bedros Tourian, and recited the last two lines: “When from the world my memory fades away / That is the time when I indeed shall die!”
“First and foremost, last but not least, it is all about keeping the memory of our rich legacy alive and propagating it for future generations,” he concluded.
Rev. Kevork Terian of the Armenian Cilicia Evangelical Church of Pasadena ended the program with the benediction and wished Aroyan good health to “continue his sacred mission to create new memories for those yearning for their homeland, which was so unjustly taken away from them.”
The reception, prepared by Nora Nalbandian and Maggie Mangassarian Goschin, the director of the Ararat-Eskijian Museum as well as one of Armen Aroyan’s pilgrims, was a veritable cornucopia of Armenian dishes representing the different regions of historic Armenia. A varied selection of wine was donated by Paul Kalemkiarian of the Wine of the Month Club.
Armen Aroyan is in the process of publishing a two-volume collection of writings by and about his co-travelers and their experiences.