Jaquelin Babakhani was born in Tehran. She attended Vache Hovsepian-Kananian Kushesh School and received her higher education at the Azat University of Iran where she went on to teach English literature.

She has served as a member of the Armenian University Association, but hasn’t been active in community life since she has spent most of her time learning and preparing for her lessons.

In 2008, Jaquelin Babakhani and her family repatriated to Armenia. A major contributing factor for Babakhani’s repatriation was her participation in a conference in Yerevan. She was visiting Armenia for the first time. She fell in love with the homeland and was very impressed with the warmth surrounding her, and so she decided to return to Armenia.

Upon her return to Tehran, she told her husband about her decision with excitement. Her husband gave a positive reaction, and the two settled in the native land.

In an interview with Hayern Aysor, Jaquelin Babakhani said it was relatively easy for them to adapt to life in Armenia. Of course, they did face hardships in the beginning, but didn’t feel depressed and never lost hope and faith. Relying on each other and helping each other out, they turned a new page and got back on their feet. Now, they feel happy in Armenia.

Jaquelin assures that repatriation helped her return to the national identity and her Armenian roots and, most importantly, repatriation helped make her soul at ease. She especially doesn’t have to worry about the future of her son, Haiberd, who is strongly attached to Armenia. Jaquelin says the day she saw Mount Ararat was one of her most unforgettable days after repatriation and touched her deeply.

“I love to be in the heart of Armenia’s beautiful nature and breathe the clean air. Some of my preferred spots are Lake Sevan, Dilijan, Vanadzor, Noyemberyan and Stepanavan. Every weekend, my family and I travel to a city to take walks, get away from it all and receive energy,” Jaquelin Babakhani said, adding that Armenia has grown tremendously over the past years and that progress and achievements are noticeable in various sectors.

It took Jaquelin a year to examine the market in Armenia in order to understand if she could find a job by her profession. Her search was not in vain. In 2009, she opened Horizon Training Center for Foreign Languages, which works effectively, and the visitors agree. The teachers are smart and devoted Armenian specialists from Armenia and the Diaspora.

“The future of the Armenian people is going to be brighter. We need to work together, move forward and lay the future of our country on strong foundations, and there are all the preconditions for that,” Jaquelin Babakhani concluded with optimism.

Gevorg Chichyan