Entries from July 2007
Only a week old, AGBU Blog is already receiving a great deal of virtual attention thanks, in part, to the highly popular FOCUS event this past weekend. If you’ve missed the highlights, here they are:
By 2:30pm on Monday (July 30), AGBU Blog already had 582 views, surpassing its previous day record of 422. [ADDENDUM: The total for July 30, 2007, was a whopping 801 views!]
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Categories: AGBU · Armenian · diaspora
Over 500 guests attended the FOCUS gala event at Gotham Hall in Manhattan’s Herald Square. The elegant affair paid tribute to the 20th Anniversary of the New York Summer Intern Program (NYSIP) and honored Vartkess and Rita Balian, the co-chairs of the AGBU President’s Club, which has supported NYSIP from its inception.
FOCUS co-chairs Ani Manoukian and Arda Berberian welcomed guests, and longtime NYSIP activities coordinator Arthur Bohdjalian of Vienna, Austria, emceed the evening’s festivities.
A video showcased NYSIP alumni and staff speaking about some of the highlights of a program that has touched hundreds of lives for two decades. Raffi Balian, son of Vartkess and Rita Balian, spoke about his parents’ support of NYSIP and their belief in the future of Armenian youth. Vartkess and Rita Balian were also invited to speak and they expressed their appreciation and thanked FOCUS for making the dream of uniting Armenian youth into a reality.
Photos from the evening and other FOCUS 2007 events will be posted in the coming weeks on agbu.org/focus.
Categories: AGBU · Armenian · diaspora
Over two dozen items were sold as part of the Saturday auction at the Grant Gallery in Soho. Known as FOCUS on Art, the event raised thousands of dollars for FOCUS’ scholarship endowment for the New York Summer Intern Program (click here to donate).
Close to two hundred guests attended the lively auction, which included silent auction items and a select number of works sold at live auction. Charity auctioneer A. Agopian and assistant auctioneer T. Aynilian roused the crowd and made it a memorable fundraising experience.
Artworks from the Yerevan Fine Arts Academy (Yerevan, Armenia) and the AGBU Sarian Art Academy (Aleppo, Syria) were among those sold for charity. Other participating artists included, Anet Abnous, Vahram Aghazarian, Shant Donabedian, Linda Ganjian, Aram Jibilian, Carla Koulajian, Vadim Krisyan, Helga Sarkis, Gailyn Saroyan, Sam Tchakalian and Sossy Terzian (complete list of artists and works).
Categories: AGBU · Armenian · diaspora
600+ FOCUS guests traveled to New York’s Upper West Side for the Friday club event at Loft. A staple of the FOCUS weekend, revelers danced until 4am on the two floor dance club.
Categories: AGBU · Armenian · diaspora
Close to a hundred alumni of the New York Summer Intern Program (NYSIP) gathered for a small lunch featuring former interns that have arrived to attend the FOCUS festivities. Keynote speaker, Paul Najarian, spoke about the importance of making yourself available to mentor others and what the NYSIP internship meant to him–namely proving to himself that he could accomplish anything he set out to do.
Emceed by former Associate Director, Lana Kazangian, other intern alumni also spoke briefly about their personal NYSIP experiences.
AGBU President’s Club co-chairs, Vartkess & Rita Balian also attended the event and Rita Balian spoke about how NYSIP began 20 years ago when her and her husband saw a need in America for programs that reconnected Armenian youth with the greater Armenian community.
The event was a unique chance for some of the 580+ alumni of NYSIP to reunite with fellow interns and reminisce about an experience that changed all their lives.
Categories: AGBU · Armenian · diaspora
Roughly 200 guests converged on Midtown Loft in Manhattan to kick off AGBU FOCUS 2007. FOCUS Committee member, Amy Katcherian, moderated a panel on active citizenship and the experience of Armenian young professionals balancing their commitments to their Armenian and non-Armenian communities. Panel members from Lugano (Switz.), Moscow, New York, San Francisco and Toronto and spoke during the networking event and then guests were invited to join the discussion with their viewpoints.
After the panel, guests were invited to to the rooftop terrace for refreshments. With a stunning view of the midtown skyline, it was the perfect backdrop for a weekend event that will attract over 700 guests from around the world.
Categories: AGBU · Armenian · diaspora
The inaugural group of AGBU Yerevan Summer Intern Program (YSIP) participants have been actively taking advantage of the new YSIP blog and posting great items (including tons of photos) that should be of interest to anyone fascinated with Armenia and how it is viewed through youthful eyes.
Some highlights:
Categories: AGBU · Armenia · Armenian
Last Monday, July 23, 2007 local Armenian American professional, Paul Kayaian spoke to the 2007 NY Summer Intern Program (NYSIP) group about strategies for getting a job after college.
The self-professed “sports guy” emphasized the importance of networking, confidence, and a well-honed resume in the post-college job search. Having worked in the fields of marketing and advertising for Nascar, WWF, NBA, NFL, XFL and Madison Square Gardens, he brought a wide array of experience to the lecture, which has become a favorite among interns year after year.
Tonight, NYSIP hosts their annual Supervisor’s Reception for the dozens of supervisors that have helped the interns grow professionally over the summer through the internship experience.
Soon, another year of NYSIP will come to a close as many of the interns will be leaving for home this weekend, while the remainder will be departing the following week.
Categories: AGBU · Armenian · diaspora
Last Friday, July 20, the Young Professionals (YP) of Toronto hosted a party at 577 to toast the launching of their new website, which will keep members informed about new and upcoming events, seminars and regional YP events–their new home on the World Wide Web is: www.ypto.ca
Established only last year, YP Toronto recently hosted a slew of successful spring lectures including:
Also, check out some of their photos from past events.
YP Toronto is part of a growing network of 19 AGBU YP Groups and supporters around the world who are committed to preserving and promoting the Armenian identity and culture through educational, cultural, and humanitarian programs.
Categories: AGBU · Armenian · diaspora
