Author: Jirair Kafian

August 31 marks the 114th birth anniversary of Armenian American writer William Saroyan—the son of Bitlis’ Armenak and Takoohi and a first-generation Fresno Saroyan. But the story of the Fresno Saroyans did not start or end with the most famous Saroyan family member. 

Mampre as a child (third in top row from left) with his classmates in Bitlis, circa 1893

William’s mother Takoohi had a first cousin named Mampre Saroyan, a fellow Bitlisian, who in his private memoirs credited the Hairenik newspaper as the source for the improvement of his native Armenian tongue. Mampre and his family escaped the Armenian Genocide a few years after Takoohi and Armenak had already settled in America. But it took several decades for the separated Saroyan families to reunite in Fresno, California.

Dr. Tony Saroyan

In a recent interview with the Weekly, Dr. Tony Mampre Saroyan, the great-grandson of Mampre Saroyan, a doctor of psychology and a mental health advocate, shared his great-grandfather’s story of survival and his thoughts about being related to one of the most famous Armenians who ever lived.

While William Saroyan was growing up as a little boy in America, the Armenians who remained in occupied Western Armenia were experiencing the apotheosis of the Armenian Genocide. 

“I was the shoemaker for the Kurdish mayor of Khnus,” recalled Mampre Saroyan of his escape in Dr. Richard Hovannisian’s essay “Shades of Altruism in the Armenian Genocide.” “I said, ‘Bey, all the shoemakers from here are being deported.’ He replied that if I would stay he would protect me and my family.”

The Kurdish mayor of Khnus allowed Mampre and his family to hide out from the Ottoman Turks until it was safe for him to escape. Then, they traveled to Istanbul where they were able to take a boat to America.

“They were eventually able to leave once they were told the coast was clear,” recounted Dr. Tony Saroyan. “It was pretty brutal when he had to escape. Hearing women and children crying, seeing dead bodies on the river.”

“There was no Armenian left in the city,” were Mampre’s chilling words in Dr. Hovannisian’s essay.

According to the Armenian Immigrant Project, Mampre’s cousin Aram, most notably known as “Uncle Aram” (the lovable uncle of William Saroyan), sponsored Mampre’s journey to Ellis Island.

But when Mampre and his family landed at Ellis Island in May of 1921, they were turned away for reasons still unclear. They decided to settle in La Merced, Mexico along with 200 other Armenians. 

That’s where Dr. Tony Saroyan’s grandfather Dr. Suren Saroyan grew up and adopted much of the culture. “Armenians had to assimilate to Mexican culture because there were no Armenian churches, no Armenian schools,” said Dr. Tony Saroyan.

After graduating from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, Dr. Suren Saroyan became the first in the family to move to Fresno, where he did his residency as an anesthesiologist at Fresno Community Hospital. A few years later, around 1952, he was enlisted into the US Navy and became a lieutenant and surgeon during the Korean War. During this time, Mampre and his wife Ardemis followed suit to Fresno, a long-awaited Saroyan family reunion.

Mampre and his wife Artemis

Over the years, Dr. Suren Saroyan built a relationship with William Saroyan. When he was in Mexico, the acclaimed author even sent Dr. Suren Saroyan a copy of his book in Spanish.

“The stories [themselves] though,” said Dr. Tony Saroyan with a sigh, “I wish I had more of them.”

Dr. Suren Saroyan was a prominent Armenian in his own right, becoming a founding member of the Holy Martyrs Ferrahian Elementary and High School, the first Armenian day school in America. He was also awarded the Order of the Grand Cross of the Knights of Cilicia by His Holiness Khoren I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia.

Dr. Suren Saroyan and William Saroyan died in the same year—William on May 18, 1981 and Suren on August 28, 1981.

Last photo taken of Dr. Suren Saroyan before his death

Proof of their relationship is in a signed book gifted to Dr. Suren Saroyan in which William wrote, “All good wishes to the first Saroyan doctor, Suren. With sure faith that his work will be eminent and good.” 

Handwritten note from William Saroyan to Dr. Suren Saroyan

It took Dr. Tony Saroyan some time until he realized the rich history that came along with his last name. “It wasn’t a big deal for me initially because I didn’t grow up around Armenians. Once I got a little older, I would read his books for middle school projects, and I felt a sense of connection to that,” he explained. “Having the last name puts positive pressure on me. I don’t want to be just a Saroyan.”

Russian peacekeepers (Photo: Dickran Khodanian)

Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan appeared to criticize Russia’s role in the Artsakh conflict in a statement marking the anniversary of Armenian independence.

“Independence is strong allied relations for us, but allies are not always allies of you, but of those who ally against you,” Pashinyan said in his August 23 message, not mentioning any specific country by name.

Pashinyan also said that Armenia is still fighting for its independence. “De facto, that process has not ended until today, not because we don’t have independence, but because independence is like health, which even if you have it, you have to take care of it every day,” the statement read. “Independence is security for us. The international structures that provide it are cracking in front of all of us, and one of the first cracks was unfortunately expressed in Nagorno-Karabakh.” 

The role of the Russian peacekeeping mission in Artsakh has come under scrutiny following the August 5 announcement by Armenian authorities that the Armenian residents of the villages of Aghavno and Nerkin Sus and the town of Berdzor, all located along the Lachin (Berdzor) corridor, must evacuate their homes by August 25. 

The Berdzor district was ceded to Azerbaijan after the 2020 Artsakh War, except for the Lachin corridor connecting Armenia and Artsakh. Under the terms of the ceasefire, Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed to form a plan for the construction of an alternate route within the next three years, to which Russian peacekeepers would be redeployed. 

While the Armenian government announced that construction of the Armenian section of the route will commence this summer, the Azerbaijani government says that its portion of the road is nearly ready for use. 

Several critical pieces of infrastructure, including electric power lines, a gas pipeline and internet cable, are located on the Lachin corridor. It is unclear whether this infrastructure will be rebuilt along the new route or remain under Azerbaijan’s control. 

During a meeting with the leaders of the five political parties represented in the Artsakh parliament two days before the evacuation deadline, the leadership of the Russian peacekeeping mission said that the new route will have the same status as the Lachin corridor. 

The Russian peacekeeping force said that the “new route will have a legal status of the same corridor, and all security components will be kept, from the five-kilometer security zone to the deployment of Russian peacekeeping forces at checkpoints.”

The meeting followed an interview with Russian diplomat Maxim Seleznyov, during which he said that the Russian peacekeepers will not leave the Lachin corridor until the new route is complete.

“The Russian peacekeepers will not be deployed along the new corridor until it is put into operation, and there are agreements in this regard. The parties are in direct contact, and I assure you that the peacekeepers will not move a single centimeter until there is a new corridor,” Seleznyov told RFE/RL’s Armenian service on August 18.

Some commentators have questioned why the Armenian government agreed to cede communities along the Lachin corridor prior to the three-year deadline stipulated by the ceasefire agreement. 

“It can be firmly stated that Pashinyan’s government had given a certain agreement to hand over the city of Lachin to Azerbaijan, or at least to agree to the new route connecting Artsakh and Armenia before the three-year stipulation,” CivilNet editor-in-chief Karen Huartyunyan wrote in an August 8 article. 

“One can endlessly blame Azerbaijan,” Harutyunyan continued. “One can blame Russia, which, according to Armenia’s claims, does not properly fulfill its duties to protect the security of the Armenians of Artsakh. The fact, however, is that the Armenian government has failed to make a sober assessment of the situation that has led to the current deadlock and the loss of human lives.” 

The August 5 eviction notice for residents of Aghavno, Nerkin Sus and Berdzor followed incursions by the Azerbaijani armed forces on the northwestern part of the Martakert region of Artsakh and in the direction of the Lachin corridor on August 3 that left at least two Armenian soldiers killed and 19 injured. 

Pashinyan blamed the latest border attacks, as well as previous incursions, on the ineffectiveness of the Russian peacekeeping mission in Artsakh. 

“The capture of the villages of Khtsaberd and Hin Tagher and the capture of Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan in the presence and with the permission of the peacekeepers of the Russian Federation on December 11, 2020, the capture of the village of Parukh in Nagorno Karabakh on March 24, 2022, again in the presence of the peacekeepers of the Russian Federation, the continuous and deteriorating violations of the ceasefire regime along the contact line, the cases of physically and psychologically intimidating the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh in the presence of the peacekeepers are simply unacceptable,” Pashinyan said in an August 4 cabinet meeting. 

He continued that it is necessary to “clarify the details of the peacekeeping operation” in Artsakh. 

On August 18, Seleznyov said that the peacekeepers “are doing the maximum that their mandate allowed.”

“One would like to see restraint on all sides: on the part of the Azerbaijani troops, and most importantly on the part of the Armenian public. Here in Yerevan and in Stepanakert everyone should know and understand that the Russian peacekeeping contingent is doing the maximum it can, that it is there to try to protect the civilian population from the horrors of war as far as possible,” he said. 

Armenian Weekly contributor Dr. Benyamin Poghosyan said that blaming the Russian peacekeeping mission after every escalation increases tensions in Armenia-Russia relations and stokes anti-Russian sentiment in Armenia.

“There is a perception that the Armenian government would like to shift the blame on Russian peacekeepers for surrendering Berdzor and surrounding villages to Azerbaijan, presenting this as a result of the Russia-Azerbaijan deal against Armenian interests,” Poghosyan said in an August 8 op-ed for the Weekly.

“Directing criticism against Russian peacekeepers and stoking anti-Russian sentiments in Armenia are in line with US and EU interests in the region, which would like to see less Russian in the South Caucasus, including no Russian troops in Nagorno-Karabakh,” Poghosyan continued.