"Strategy is the art of making use of time and space. I am less concerned about the later than the former. Space we can recover, lost time never." - Napoleon Bonaparte

There are certain moments that mark a nation's history.  On December 1 we witnessed such a moment when Hayasat-1, the first satellite developed by Armenian specialists in Armenia was launched into space by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from the Vandenberg Air Base in Santa Barbara. 

From Artsakh to Armenia

Following Azerbaijan's military attack on September 19 2023, more than 100,000 refugees were forced to flee from their homes in Artsakh to Armenia. Our brothers and sisters fled with just the few possessions they were able to grab, and arrived distressed, exhausted and anxious about their uncertain future. Many families from Artsakh needed immediate critical support as soon as they arrived in Syunik. We at SYUN collaborating with our partners at VAL responded to this emergency situation by converting our Emergency Response Training Center in Goris (ERTC) to a refugee camp. Here is how we were able to help our people in need:

 Our refugee camp was operating for 30 days.

 100 people stayed in the camp during that period.

 3 families were provided with new homes.

 1 family will live in their new home for free for a year..

 24 hours special rapid response team. was on duty in the camp.

Humanitarian Aid for the People of Artsakh

After the forceful displacement of the people of Artsakh from their homeland we continued our collaboration with Ghoghanj NGO represented by Diana Grigoryan for this project to provide refugees with food and necessary supplies  .

More than 100,000 refugees from Artsakh have arrived in Armenia since the end of September 2023. Since all our joint projects with Ghoganj before these dreadful events were related to the Karmir Shuka and Taghavard communities of Artsakh, we decided to continue concentrating our activities to help refugees from these 2 villages specifically.

Within the framework of this project sugar, pasta and other products were provided to the families of  Karmir Shuka and Taghavard, thus meeting the needs of the people for a month. We didn't stop helping people from these communities and we are committed to use every possible means that will accelerate people's return to normal life.

Supporting Families of Veterans from Artsakh

5 families of Artsakh veterans were selected by our partners at VAL to receive monthly financial aid for at least 6 month starting December. 4 of these 5 families will be receiving 100,000 Armenian Drams, which makes about $250 and 1 family with 7 children will be receiving 150,000 Armenian Drams, which makes about $375 each month. In June considering the situation of each family we will decide if further support is needed.

You remember Artur Petrosyan's family, which is now one of the families that gets support because of this project. He is a veteran of several wars. They have 7 children. After Petrosyans arrived in Goris they were placed in the ERTC building which was converted to a refugee camp. After staying in the shelter for a couple of days VAL team members helped them to move to Gavar, a city in Armenia's Gegharkunik province. Our friend and partner Vardan visited the Petrosyans and brought with him a washing machine, warm blankets and other things the family needed. All this was purchased with donations from kind people. But the children were happy not about the washing machine, but because each of them received a bag of gifts.

Petrosyans in the refugee camp and then in their new home in Gavar.

First Aid Training

This is another project for which we collaborate with VAL (Վերականգնման, առաջընթացի և լուսավորության). This goal of the First Aid Training program is to prepare paramedics and the population in general to provide first aid during emergencies.

In this quarter several 2-day and 5-day advanced training sessions were held in Syunik. As a result about 550 participants gained skills that they can appy in emergency situations, amog them 200 got their second degree instructor certificates.

SYUN purchased a DJI FPV Combo to be used in a special emergency response training organized by our partners in Goris. 9 residents who passed the training learned how to search for victims in an area of disaster and rescue after finding them.

In addition to this 2-day first aid courses were held at Meghrazior's Sports and Culture Center named after Samvel Muradyan and at the "Koriz" Youth Center in Aygezard, where the indescribable activity and enthusiasm of the participants can be described in the words of a 10-year-old participant: "I have never participated in such a fun and useful class. Will you come every week?"

25 children from Meghradzor and 30 from Aygezard not only received theoretical knowledge, but also gained practical skills. They learned how to:

alert in case of emergency

stop bleeding

react in case of loss of consciousness

evacuate a victim

All the participants stressed the effectiveness of the lesson.
And when a 12-year-old "victim" was asked to get up from the lying position and take his place after showing the practical part, he said without opening his eyes: "The victim is unconscious, turn to the side position, then evacuate him"

First Aid Training in Aygezard

Kids are the Keepers of Artsakh heritage

The purpose of this project, proposed by Ghoghanj Children's Center, is to create an environment where families from Artsakh and especially children will have the opportunity to freely communicate with each other in their dialect, overcome their psychological difficulties, integrate into the new environment and at the same time preserve, value and further spread their culture and traditions.

The courses will be conducted by specialists who were also forcibly displaced from Artsakh. By providing these specialists with a job and helping them to integrate into the new life will resolve another problem.

1. History/patrology
2. Traditional dance
3. Choir
4. Handicrafts (needlework and carpetwork)
5. Psychology.

Gevorg Nahapetyan and Lilia Darbinyan are strong pillars of our organization and therefore of Armenia.

Gevorg and Lilia like to spend as much time as possible with their grandson Luka, they like hiking, traveling and of course tandem bicycle riding.

It is frequently asked why Armenians do not celebrate Christmas on December 25th with the rest of the world. Obviously, the exact date of Christ's birth has not been historically established nor is it recorded in the Gospels. However, historically, all Christian churches celebrated Christ's birth on January 6th until the fourth century. The feast of Christmas was not a separate church feast for the first four centuries of Christian history. It was celebrated with Epiphany in the one great feast of God's appearance on earth in the form of the human Messiah of Israel.

The Nativity began to be celebrated on the twenty-fifth of December in order to offset the pagan festival of the Invincible Sun, which occurred on that day. The Church established it quite consciously as an attempt to defeat the false religion of heathens. Christ is the True Son of Righteousness (Mal 4:2), who is himself worshipped by all of the elements of nature.

At the time, Christians used to observe these pagan festivities. In order to put an end to this pagan practice, the church hierarchy designated December 25th as the official date of Christmas and January 6th as the feast of Epiphany. However, Armenia was not affected by this change for the simple fact that there were no such pagan practices in Armenia at the time and the fact that the Armenian Church was not a satellite of the Roman Church. Thus, remaining faithful to the traditions of their forefathers, Armenians have continued to celebrate Christmas on January 6th until this day.

"Armenian Christmas", as it is popularly called, is a culmination of celebrations of events related to Christ's Incarnation. Theophany or Epiphany (or Աստվածահայտնություն in Armenian, which means "Revelation of God").  This is the central theme of the Christmas Season in the Armenian Church. During the Armenian Christmas season, the major events celebrated are the Nativity of Christ in Bethlehem and His Baptism in the River Jordan. The day of this major feast in the Armenian Church is January 6th.  A ceremony called “Blessing of Water” is conducted in the Armenian Church to commemorate Christ’s Baptism. 

Nativity, Gospel of Malatia, 1267-1268, illustrator (ծաղկող): Toros Roslin

Watch this short video about the Armenian Christmas

For realizing the "Davidbek Games" project SYUN launched a Facebook fundraiser. We need funding for organizing this competition-festival that will take place in Kapan at the end of July of 2024. 12 teams of young people aged 14-17 will gather in majestic Sunik for an exciting week full of games, hiking, music, dances, literature and healthy competition.

Act now and invest in the future of Armenia.

Photo by Arthur Harutyunyan