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Former Pontiac Woman, 99, Recalls Her Survival Of Armenian Genocide

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  • Former Pontiac Woman, 99, Recalls Her Survival Of Armenian Genocide

    FORMER PONTIAC WOMAN, 99, RECALLS HER SURVIVAL OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

    Macomb Daily, MI
    April 3 2014

    Ramela Carman, 99, of Livonia, a survivor of the Armenian genocide of
    1915, gets a hug from The Reverend Father Garabed Kochakian during a
    visit to St. John's Armenian Church in Southfield, pictured Tuesday
    March 25, 2014. Carman will turn 100 April 7th. (Vaughn Gurganian-The
    Oakland Press)

    By Megan Semeraz

    As a child, former Pontiac resident Ramela Carman, 99, survived the
    Armenian Genocide -- which will have its 99th anniversary this April.

    A long time member of St. John's Armenian Church in Southfield, Carman
    is about to celebrate her 100th birthday, but she did her own cooking,
    cleaning and shopping up until she moved out of her senior apartment
    in August 2013 when she declared she is too tired.

    The church will be coming together with other area Armenian churches
    to honor those that died in the genocide.

    Rev. Garabed Kochakian of St. John's Armenian Church said his wife is
    the niece of Carman. He said it is a time for all Armenians to come
    together to pray to remember the 1.5 million Armenians that perished
    during the years of 1915 to 1918 under the Ottoman Turkish Empire.

    Family members of Carman describe her life as "unique," as she was
    born in Yozgat, Turkey on April 7, 1914 during one of the roughest
    times in Armenian history.

    "She comes from a historic Armenian town and as a young child in that
    historic Armenian town, they were actually lands that were overtaken
    by the Turkish government," Kochakian said. "But historically, before
    her birth, the lands belonged to the Armenian people."

    Growing up in Turkey, Carman's family was actually considered "above
    average" because her father was a skilled tradesman who made shoes
    by hand for the wealthy. When the massacres began, Armenians fled
    their homes, only taking their most basic needs.

    Armenians were not able to return home for years, which even then,
    their homes had been looted and vandalized.

    "We came home, our home was empty," she said. "... We didn't have
    any money for nothing ... We used flour, a little bit of parsley and
    onion and rolled that up with some salt and ate that."

    Carman's father moved many places to avoid being killed, but finally
    arrived in Yozgat, Turkey using a donkey for transportation.

    Meanwhile, Carman was staying with her paternal aunt and three cousins
    in a village, where women were banished to.

    "There wasn't one family that wasn't touched by the holocaust or
    genocide that occurred," Kochakian said. "This is important for human
    rights, justice and truth -- it should prevail for all people."

    It wasn't until 1916 or 1917 that the family was able to move back
    home, but they lived in Yozgat until 1924. Living conditions were
    terrible, Carman said, so the family left for Instanbul.

    The family traveled by wagon, which one night ended up driving
    straight into a lake, where Carman nearly drowned until her mother
    saved her. After the accident, the family decided to move to Ankara,
    where Carman went to school and received a diploma.

    At age 11, Carman said she began working in a factory that made
    clothing. She was able to demonstrate the steps of putting together
    a shirt in the factory, piece-by-piece.

    In 1960, Carman said she traveled to the United States, where she
    ended up marrying her husband Masa. She was hired to repair Oriental
    rugs for Hagopian's.

    Her husband passed away on Aug. 18, 1995.

    Kochakian describes Carman as, "very respectful, considerate, a very
    loving individual, always wanting to do good for others."

    Today Carman lives at Manoogian Manor in Livonia. Kochakian said
    Carman has become a helpful resident there, "counselling them and
    making sure they eat their food."

    She said the key to living a long and healthy life is being a
    "hardworker."

    http://www.macombdaily.com/general-news/20140403/former-pontiac-woman-99-recalls-her-survival-of-armenian-genocide




    From: A. Papazian
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