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Fund for Armenian Relief
Press Release
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Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR)
Press Office
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212) 889-5150; Fax: (212) 889-4849
email: press@farusa.org
web: www.farusa.org
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FAR's Young Professionals Trip to Armenia
Two weeks may not seem like a lengthy enough time to have a life-altering experience. For alumni of FAR's Young Professionals Trip to Armenia, however, it certainly is. For 14 consecutive summers, FAR has organized a pilgrimage to Armenia for Young Professionals between the ages of 23 and 40 to give them the opportunity to explore and discover their homeland.
This year, the trip will take place from June 8 - June 22, 2009 and promises another summer of sightseeing, socialization and cultural immersion. FAR's YP trip will tour the entire country of Armenia, from the North to the South, the East to the West. The many historic sites participants will visit include the ancient Geghard monastery, the Genocide Memorial, Noravank monastery, and Holy Etchmiadzin, where the group will meet with His Holiness Catholicos Karekin II.
Aside from the historic sites, participants will also visit important and significant cities and towns throughout Armenia including Yerevan, Dzaghgadzor, Dilijan, Sevan, Goris, Jermuk, and Gyumri, where they will visit FAR-operated projects.
Throughout all the excursions, meetings with government and religious leaders, and sightseeing, participants will continuously learn about Armenian life, culture, and history. From browsing the items for sale in Vernisage, an open-air market in Yerevan, to lighting a candle at Holy Etchmiadzin, each participant will connect with their homeland in their own unique way.
For Natalie Gabrelian, who had not visited Armenia since she was a child, the trip was indeed a memorable and unforgettable experience. "It truly was hard to say goodbye to good friends, good fun, and good food," said Gabrelian, an alumni of FAR's YP trip in 2007. "But we had to accept the sad reality that the time had come to go back to the lives and loved ones we had left back home. Yet somehow we just couldn't part with our homeland or the new life and family we had created over the two weeks in Armenia."
While it was a new experience for some participants, it was a return home for others. Marine Vorperian, another FAR YP alumna, immigrated to the United States from Armenia when she was 12 years old. Her first trip back was with FAR in 2005. "FAR YP brought our country's deeply rooted traditions and culture to the surface. The trip was more of a soul fulfilling, mentally stimulating pilgrimage than your typical summer vacation," said Vorperian.
Many have already signed up to participate in this summer's FAR YP trip. Amy Samelian, who is on the parish council of the only Armenian Apostolic church in Minnesota, is taking this opportunity to discover her homeland for the first time in her life, and has chosen to do it with FAR's YP trip. "When someone visits Armenia, whether it be for the Peace Corps, or to help build homes, or to provide support to relief agencies, they all say one is changed forever. I hear it is the trip of a lifetime and I am very much looking forward to it," said Samelian.
There will be a few new additions to the itinerary this year, including a meeting with the new Minister of Diaspora, Hranoush Hakobyan and a trip to the south of Armenia to visit the city of Meghri. There will also be two different travel arrangements in which participants can opt to travel with the group from New York to Yerevan, or choose to fly alone and meet the group in Armenia. The total cost of the trip is $1,550, which includes double occupancy hotel accommodation, all taxes and fees, two meals a day in Yerevan and three meals a day outside of Yerevan, all entrance fees and guided sightseeing. The total cost with flights (all-inclusive package) includes all of the above and all flight arrangements from and to New York City for only $2,975.
For more information on the Young Professionals Trip to Armenia, please contact Project Director Arto Vorperian at (212) 889-5150 or at arto@farusa.org.
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About FAR
Since its founding in response to the 1988 earthquake, FAR has served hundreds of thousands of people through more than 220 relief and development programs in Armenia and Karabagh. It has channeled more than $265 million in humanitarian assistance by implementing a wide range of projects including emergency relief, construction, education, medical aid, and economic development.
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For more information on FAR or to send donations, contact us at 630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016; telephone (212) 889-5150; fax (212) 889-4849; http://www.farusa.org; e-mail press@farusa.org.
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