Hello all… HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Lets do this right. Shnorhavor Nor Dari yev Sourp Dzenount.
I had a great 2 weeks. I spent Christmas in Quebec City with my family and Lara’s (my wife) family. This is where we announced that we were pregnant for three months and that the baby was due for July. Needless to say, lots of emotions and surprise. It was nice and snowy out. We had a great BBQ in the snow (which was quite original). New years was as much fun. We had lots and lots to eat and even more to drink (nothing to do with Shushan’s problematic drinking). Anyhow, It’s now back to the routine. Work, school, family… and squash. Yes, I have finally decided to move to another sport then dancing. I will be playing squash for a couple of months and update you with my progression. I must tell you that I have never played this game.
Of course I had a chance to visit some of the community centres in Montreal and go to church and so on. What I saw though was not very moving either spiritually or emotionally. The AGBU centre was/is undergoing massive renovations, The Sourp Hagop Church (Giligian Sea) and the Tashnag Centre had also completed its renovation and more buildings have been bought by the armenian communities. WHY? Why spend so much money on buildings that are half empty and on a community who is losing interest in their centres. In Montreal we have about 30 000 Armenians. For this population there are 3 full time schools, one Saturday School; 2 (Ejmiadzin) churches; 2 (Cilicia) churches; one Catholic Church and 3 Protestant churches. There is the AGBU centre, the Tekeyan Cultural centre (Ramgavar), the Sourp Hagop centre (Tashnag) with another affiliate in the city of Laval, the Bolsahay centre, the Yekibdahay centre, the church halls… but who uses them? Most of these centres and churches are empty. They are beautifully decorated but empty of people, its members are all gone away. Where have they gone? Why have they gone? My theory is that the centres are being led by a group of elderly elite mostly male members, who had a vision and dream when they took over the communities. They were very successful in fulfilling their dreams and building these centres and churches and halls and schools. They were able to preserve the culture and keep the community alive. But, now that their job is done, they are working against themselves by keeping the power of decision making tightly within a small circle of friends. They bring on a youth once in a while to show that they are open to the idea of succession planning. But they are wrong! You don’t develop a succession planning by closing off rooms to the youth by making the gym and the library accessible to the only a few hours a week. You don’t build ownership by having “barahantess” after “barahantess” (ball).
There are lots of young professional able bodies willing to put in time and participate in their communities, but they have all been pushed away, literally, by the leaders of the community. We just need to have a common objective and work on that.
Raffi M. had an interesting view on donating money for causes. I share the same views. Why build more buildings and spend millions of dollars when our brothers, sisters and cousins can’t even find food to eat in Armenia. Maybe the churches and organisations need to re-evaluate their mission and put their eggs in the right basket.
By the way happy belated birthday Lena (in Armenia).
And Juan, what can I say… patience buddy.
Lets do this right. Shnorhavor Nor Dari yev Sourp Dzenount.
I had a great 2 weeks. I spent Christmas in Quebec City with my family and Lara’s (my wife) family. This is where we announced that we were pregnant for three months and that the baby was due for July. Needless to say, lots of emotions and surprise. It was nice and snowy out. We had a great BBQ in the snow (which was quite original). New years was as much fun. We had lots and lots to eat and even more to drink (nothing to do with Shushan’s problematic drinking). Anyhow, It’s now back to the routine. Work, school, family… and squash. Yes, I have finally decided to move to another sport then dancing. I will be playing squash for a couple of months and update you with my progression. I must tell you that I have never played this game.
Of course I had a chance to visit some of the community centres in Montreal and go to church and so on. What I saw though was not very moving either spiritually or emotionally. The AGBU centre was/is undergoing massive renovations, The Sourp Hagop Church (Giligian Sea) and the Tashnag Centre had also completed its renovation and more buildings have been bought by the armenian communities. WHY? Why spend so much money on buildings that are half empty and on a community who is losing interest in their centres. In Montreal we have about 30 000 Armenians. For this population there are 3 full time schools, one Saturday School; 2 (Ejmiadzin) churches; 2 (Cilicia) churches; one Catholic Church and 3 Protestant churches. There is the AGBU centre, the Tekeyan Cultural centre (Ramgavar), the Sourp Hagop centre (Tashnag) with another affiliate in the city of Laval, the Bolsahay centre, the Yekibdahay centre, the church halls… but who uses them? Most of these centres and churches are empty. They are beautifully decorated but empty of people, its members are all gone away. Where have they gone? Why have they gone? My theory is that the centres are being led by a group of elderly elite mostly male members, who had a vision and dream when they took over the communities. They were very successful in fulfilling their dreams and building these centres and churches and halls and schools. They were able to preserve the culture and keep the community alive. But, now that their job is done, they are working against themselves by keeping the power of decision making tightly within a small circle of friends. They bring on a youth once in a while to show that they are open to the idea of succession planning. But they are wrong! You don’t develop a succession planning by closing off rooms to the youth by making the gym and the library accessible to the only a few hours a week. You don’t build ownership by having “barahantess” after “barahantess” (ball).
There are lots of young professional able bodies willing to put in time and participate in their communities, but they have all been pushed away, literally, by the leaders of the community. We just need to have a common objective and work on that.
Raffi M. had an interesting view on donating money for causes. I share the same views. Why build more buildings and spend millions of dollars when our brothers, sisters and cousins can’t even find food to eat in Armenia. Maybe the churches and organisations need to re-evaluate their mission and put their eggs in the right basket.
By the way happy belated birthday Lena (in Armenia).
And Juan, what can I say… patience buddy.
posted by Raffi N at 12:31 AM
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