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AYF Raises Money to Fund Freedom Fighter's Medical Needs

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  • AYF Raises Money to Fund Freedom Fighter's Medical Needs

    AYF Raises Money to Fund Freedom Fighter's Medical Needs

    asbarez
    Thursday, August 23rd, 2012

    A scene from the AYF event benefitting Freedom Fighters

    PASADENA - Armenians gathered in solidarity at a Revolutionary Song
    Night dinner on Saturday, August 18th at the Pasadena Armenian Center
    to fundraise for AYF's `With Our Soldiers' Campaign. With the Central
    Executive declaring this year as the `Year of the Azadamardig,' the
    event was one of many to assist veterans of the Artsakh War with
    necessary medical treatments. Twenty Azadamardigs have been treated so
    far, with their ailments ranging from the need for eye prosthetics and
    hearing aids to surgeries to remove shrapnel still within their bodies
    decades after the war.

    More than 150 people were in attendance, and donations were being
    gathered throughout the night as Viken Yacoubian performed
    revolutionary songs. The AYF reached out to the community and received
    overwhelming support from local ARF, ARS, and AYF chapters. Individual
    supporters and their families also donated, enabling more aid to reach
    the war veterans in need of medical care. Over thirty thousand dollars
    was raised. `This event showed that our community stands with the AYF
    in supporting our freedom fighters. We thank them for that support and
    we are confident that together, we can make the lives of at least a
    few dozen of our Azadamardigs better,' said AYF Central Executive
    Chairman David Arakelyan.

    The `With Our Soldiers' committee of the AYF premiered a video it had
    prepared documenting the atrocious conditions the veterans live in,
    and the personal connections made between AYF members who traveled to
    Armenia this summer, and the Azadamardigs in the Homeland. Caspar
    Jivalagian, one of this year's Youth Corps group leaders who visited
    the Azadamardigs said, `The conditions they live in are unacceptable,
    and will break your heart. It is embarrassing, very embarrassing that
    the veterans, who gave their blood for our country, are not being
    taken care of by the government of Armenia.'

    It is the bureaucracy in Armenia which prevents veterans from
    receiving any sort of aid from the institutions meant to provide such
    support to the freedom fighters. Veterans need volumes of supporting
    paperwork, which is difficult to obtain since many of them never filed
    the proper claims to receive an official status of a `freedom fighter'
    back in early 90's. Even for those veterans who have their documents
    in order, the government assistance is so insignificant compared to
    their needs and so difficult to obtain that many simply choose not to
    pursue it. This leaves the wounded and suffering Azadamardigs to fend
    for themselves and attempt to provide for their families.

    An important factor in dedicating this year to the freedom fighters is
    the need to raise awareness about their problems and to make this
    issue a focal point for the Armenian society, both in the Diaspora and
    in the Homeland. `Hopefully, the With Our Soldiers initiative will
    bring greater attention to the issues faced by our freedom fighters
    and force the Armenian government to do more in resolving these
    problems,' stated Arakelyan.

    The With Our Soldiers committee worked tirelessly to ensure the
    success of the event, especially in securing donations. Tro Krikorian,
    a member of With Our Soldiers taskforce and emcee for the evening
    concluded, `It was an amazing event all around, especially in terms of
    fundraising. The video presentations really shed light on the
    campaign, which helped garner new support around this important issue.
    The campaign committee was able to raise enough funds to help over 50
    veterans with their medical needs.' Jivalagian added, `I promised we'd
    go back with more help. We really are changing lives.'

    For more information about the WOS campaign and further efforts to aid
    veterans of the Artsakh war, visit www.WithOurSoldiers.com.

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