PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Chris Zakian
Tel: (212) 686-0710; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:
July 13, 2009
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IN MEMORIAM: JACK ANTREASSIAN (1920-2009)
NOTE TO EDITORS: Jack Antreassian-writer, editor, publisher, executive
director of both the AGBU and the Eastern Diocese, a true giant of the
Armenian-American community-passed away on July 4, 2009, in New York,
following an illness. He was 89. A memorial service will be held at St.
Vartan Armenian Cathedral (Second Avenue at 34th Street, in New York City)
on Sunday, July 26, at 4:00 p.m. What follows is a brief account of Mr.
Antreassian’s remarkable life and career.
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In Memoriam: Jack Antreassian (1920-2009)
Jack (Ardavast) Antreassian was born on April 20, 1920, in Constantinople,
where his family had sought shelter from pogroms perpetrated in their native
Hazari, Chimishgezeg. His father went ahead to New York City to prepare the
way for the rest of the family (and to begin his new career as a barber).
Six months after their arrival in Bolis, his mother Satenig brought Anne,
Varsenig and baby Ardavast to New York. Three older brothers-Ardashes,
Ashod, and Antranig (who became an eloquent leader and writer in the
Armenian-speaking world)-had to be placed in an orphanage in Greece, and
could only join the others a few years later.
First settling on East 27th Street in New York’s "Little Armenia," the
Antreassians eventually moved to Washington Heights. Jack won a scholarship
to Stuyvesant High School, then went to City College for two years before
leaving to help support the family, despite his father’s pleas for him to
stay in school.
In 1943, on a furlough from his three-year stint in the Air Force, he
married Alice Eksouzian, whom he had met through his sister Anne. Jack
often related their love-at-first-sight story: "I remember her smile. I
fell in love with her the minute I saw her and we knew from that first
moment that there would be no one else." The couple had two children,
Michael and Elise, and enjoyed all the pleasures of young family life in the
home they bought in Flushing, Queens, next door to his sister Varsenig and
brother-in-law George.
Passionate about literature and poetry, Jack continued to write even as he
entered a long and distinguished career of public service in the Armenian
community. He apprenticed at the Armenian Mirror-Spectator (to which he
returned a few times later as editor) under the fatherly and cherished
tutelage of Bedros Norehad. He later served as Executive Director of the
AGBU at its East 40th Street headquarters in New York, where he launched an
ambitious Armenian cultural program of art exhibits, concerts, and classes.
During his tenure, the local chapters nationwide were strong and
numerous-dozens existed and were the main strength of the organization. He
did a great deal of traveling in an effort to encourage and cultivate
chapter growth. On a national level, he helped establish the Antranig Dance
Group, Camp Nubar, and the Ararat Quarterly, a literary magazine that
featured Armenian artists and writers (with a sizable non-Armenian
subscriber list-it was even sold at newsstands) which Jack edited for its
first eight years. He later established Ararat Press, a brief publishing
venture of fiction, drama and poetry.
Offered the executive position at the Diocese of the Armenian Church of
America, Jack worked with the Primate, Archbishop Torkom Manoogian (now
Patriarch of Jerusalem), for several years bringing the same creative
leadership to the work of the Diocese. It was during this "Golden Age" of
the Diocesan headquarters that a number of exciting programs were born: the
Festival of the Armenian Spirit; the One World Festival, a huge cultural
event co-sponsored with New York City that featured international dance
groups and food and attracted thousands of visitors to the Cathedral and St
Vartan Park; Friday Night Open House-evenings of Armenian food, games, and
special programs; Pro Musica, scholarships and concerts for young Armenians
in the performing arts; and the St. Vartan Drama Group, among others.
These were the early days of the Diocesan Center, in the wake of the
consecration of St. Vartan Cathedral. The center was so alive with
activity-with classes in art appreciation, language, cooking, and history,
exhibits, and "talk show" interview evenings with notable Armenians-that a
popular newsletter was released called Center News. Jack also launched St.
Vartan Press, among whose titles was the enormously lucrative cookbook,
Armenian Cooking Today, a labor of love written and donated by his wife
Alice, which earned many thousands of dollars for the Diocese.
In leading both of these Armenian institutions, Jack set many precedents:
introducing the Armenian public to important national and international
personalities such as Aram Khachaturian, Rouben Mamoulian, Michael Arlen,
William Saroyan, and Ben Bagdikian among others (the special evenings
featuring these talents were exciting community events); forming and serving
on dozens of energetic committees; providing opportunities for writers,
artists, and musicians to work and serve, launching many a career in the
process.
Along with his strong, innovative leadership, Jack possessed a rare quality
for a community leader. In a tribute in the Mirror-Spectator to Jack and
Bedros Norehad, two of the paper’s illustrious editors, Michael Zeytoonian
noted that Jack " had a wonderful and unassuming charisma.and possessed a
keen ability to relate to all types of people, to meet them at whatever
place they were at in their lives and to bring them into the fold. His
sense of community and grasp of the notion that every individual has a role
in the greater good were infectious." As a result, wherever he went, Jack
quickly attracted droves of talented, enthusiastic volunteers who felt both
challenged and nurtured by him.
Upon retiring, Jack returned to the Diocese at the request of Archbishop
Manoogian, to oversee the massive relief efforts for the 1988 earthquake in
Armenia, traveling there himself a number of times. This effort was
eventually to evolve into the highly effective Fund for Armenian Relief
(FAR).
But perhaps his most important "second career" venture was Ashod Press, a
publishing project named for his beloved brother who died in the Spanish
Civil War. The effort, based on a highly personal vision of seeing Armenian
literature translated and new writers encouraged and cultivated, produced 32
titles of great Armenian literature, original poetry, essays, memoirs, and
its own quarterly newsletter. In 1989, when a friend (who wished to remain
anonymous) approached him with the idea of a literary prize for Armenian
writers, Jack was instrumental in creating the annual "Anahid Award." This
has so far celebrated the achievement of 19 writers, granting each a $5,000
stipend and the recognition of a grateful community.
Jack was blessed with a large extended family for whom he felt great
affection, counting them as yet another gift in his life. He is survived by
his daughter Elise, her husband Papken who was like a son to him, and their
children (and his adoring grandchildren) Kohar, Aris, and Vahan Bayizian,
with whom he lived for the past 15 years, as well as a son Michael, his wife
Brenda, and their son Adam.
He also leaves behind the love of his life, his wife Alice. When she
developed Alzheimer’s 15 years ago, Jack devotedly cared for her first at
home, then at his daughter’s house; when she finally had to enter the New
York Armenian Home, Jack visited her daily, sometimes twice a day.
During his own illness, to which he succumbed on Saturday, July 4, 2009, he
was serenely philosophical. "I have lived a long, happy life. I would be a
fool to complain now that I have to leave it. What a lucky man I have
been."
Luckier were those who knew and loved him.
A memorial service for Jack Antreassian will be held at St. Vartan Armenian
Cathedral (Second Avenue at 34th Street, in New York City) on Sunday, July
26, at 4:00 p.m. The family has asked that in-lieu-of-flowers donations go
to the New York Armenian Home, in Flushing, N.Y.
–7/13/09
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PHOTO CAPTION:
Jack Antreassian (1920-2009).
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