From July 13 to 28, according to tradition, 19 alumni of AGBU Marie Manoogian School of Argentina paid a visit to Armenia. There is a short story behind the visit. Throughout the school year, the graduating students prepare various Armenian dishes and sell them in one of the school’s halls on Fridays and Saturdays, turning the hall into a symbolic restaurant. The menu mainly includes the dishes of Cilician Armenia, including Humus, Tabbouleh, Pasuts Dolma, etc. The students raise funds and purchase their tickets to Armenia. Through this program, the AGBU has sent 1,000 Argentine-Armenian students to Armenia for the past 33 years.

This year’s visit to the Mother Homeland became a visit that the Argentine-Armenian students will always remember. They not only visited different sites and spent time in the heart of Armenia’s beautiful nature, but also accomplished a mission. After the four-day Artsakh war in April, at the initiative of former chairman of AGBU Argentina, honorary member of the AGBU Central Board Antonio Sarafian, the students organized a fundraiser and expressed the desire to transfer the funds to the families of soldiers who had fallen in the war.

In an interview with Hayern Aysor, Antonio Sarafian stated that they wanted to keep the feeling of patriotism and the idea of helping Armenia alive in the souls of the young Argentine-Armenians. The students were willing and quickly took action. “Generally speaking, supporting Armenia and Artsakh must be our common concern and sacred duty. I assure you that the Armenian Diaspora always stands by Armenia’s side in times of joy and misery,” Antonio Sarafian said.

Recently, the funds raised by the students were transferred to the families of the seven victims of the four-day war through the RA Ministry of Diaspora.

“Such events will be ongoing through cooperation with the RA Ministry of Diaspora. I would also like to express gratitude to the RA Ministry of Diaspora, especially Minister Hranush Hakobyan for always keeping us in her focus when carrying out various programs aimed at preserving the Armenian identity,” Antonio Sarafian concluded.

Gevorg Chichyan