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Hunger Is Not New To Armenia

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  • Hunger Is Not New To Armenia

    HUNGER IS NOT NEW TO ARMENIA

    Huffington Post
    July 12 2014

    by Kristy Khachigian, Development Director, Orran USA

    Turks starved hundreds of thousands of Armenians to death in 1915. It
    was Armenia's Great Genocide.

    My grandfather was his family's sole survivor as the genocide hit;
    the rest died of starvation.

    Hunger is not new to Armenia.

    But for so many in today's modern societies, it's impossible to
    imagine what it's like to be hungry -- I mean really hungry --
    compounded with neverending pain and suffering. Not being able to
    feed your own children, like many face in Armenia, is burdening with
    feelings of great stress and failure.

    Children around the world can relate to being deprived of this
    essential life component. Cayden Taipalus, an eight-year-old student in
    Michigan, was encouraged to help a classmate when denied a hot lunch
    (but offered a cold one) because he had more than $5.00 of debt on
    his school lunch account. After being witness to this traumatizing
    experience, Cayden raised money to pay off not only that one child's
    debt, but every student's debt at his school. His campaign soon went
    viral and raised more than $14,000.

    Today, food is a centerpiece to the Armenian heritage, but it now
    has a much more positive connotation. Recently, my work to fund needy
    Armenian children has centered around food.

    Orran, which means "haven" in Armenian, is an after school program
    for the country's most vulnerable children. It also serves as a soup
    kitchen for the elderly. It costs Orran $500 to feed one child for an
    entire year. Between its two centers, Orran spends more than $100,000
    annually to provide meals for more than 250 children and elderly.

    Hunger and shelter were the main drivers that encouraged Orran's
    founders, Armine Hovannisian, and her husband, Raffi K. Hovannisian
    (first minister of foreign affairs of independent Armenia) to open
    the center in 2000.

    Upon entering the program, children arrive hungry and weak; their
    growth is stunted by lack of nutrition.

    When a trio of brothers arrived at Orran last year, each boy ended
    up eating three servings of food for the entire first month just to
    make up for the nourishment they lacked for so long.

    With food being a necessity in our lives, it becomes the centerpiece
    of everything we do.

    A recent cooking day with my cousin allowed me to learn the recipes
    to my favorite Armenian foods. She introduced me to manti (meat and
    pastry dumplings), kololak (meatball soup) and kata (sweet bread). A
    visit to Alvard Barseghian's will always include plenty homemade
    treats, plus a doggie bag (or several large containers) to take home.

    My favorite part of the visit though was the chance to sit down with
    three generations (Alvard, her mother and daughter) over traditional
    Armenian coffee. The history and camaraderie felt during this ritual
    is a cherished moment that takes me back to a simple life.

    Another Armenian cooking experience I had was a kufta-making party at
    the Aghajanian's home. Kufta is lean ground meat mixed with cracked
    wheat made into a meatball with ground meat inside. Our host for
    the kufta-making party, Michael, grew up in an Armenian suburb in
    Boston and continues one of his favorite family traditions of large
    gatherings in the kitchen with everyone cooking together.

    Even the Kardashian sisters still make their traditional Armenian
    breakfast dish beeshee for special occasions.

    Today, food can be a vehicle for helping to feed those who cannot
    support themselves.

    Last week, Hopscotch, an upscale diner in Oakland, Calif., hosted a
    dinner to raise money for Orran's children, allowing the charity to
    keep all of the ticket proceeds.

    That evening, Armenians and non-Armenians enjoyed exceptional food
    and drinks, and more importantly, generated $1,000 in donations, which
    means that two more Armenian children will not go hungry this year.

    While my work is to raise funds to help indigent youth, I also seek
    to achieve another goal: Using food to raise awareness of supporting
    those who don't have it. Everyone can relate -- those who have it
    can help those who need it.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kristy-khachigian/hunger-is-not-new-to-arme_b_5064291.html

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