Author: Tatoyan Vazgen

Armenia marked another successful participation at the Thessaloniki International Fair, the greatest exhibition event in Greece. This year, the Fair took place at the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre from September 11 to 19, while observing all necessary hygiene protocols.

TIF was the first major exhibition to be organized in Europe in 2021 and Armenia focused on promoting Armenian products, tourism as well as investments in several fields of the Armenian economy such as agriculture, renewables, financial services and capital markets.

• Mayor Konstantinos Zervas visiting the Armenian stand at the Thessaloniki International Fair
• Fair visitors had the opportunity to taste different types of Armenian wine

The widest ever range of Armenian products was presented at the Show, including the legendary brandy ArArAt, the world famous Zulal, Armenian Wine, Karas, Arame wines, legendary Zorah (one of the best 10 wines of the world according to Bloomberg), the multi-award winning Kilikia beer, Jermuk and Bjni mineral waters, Noyan Premium juices as well as the innovative AWI Watches. Capital markets were presented by Armenbrok, the leading brokerage firm of Armenia and its associates in Greece.

The nine-day exhibition attracted thousands of Greek and non-Greek visitors including a lot of diplomats from several countries such as Italy, Cyprus, Luxemburg, Romania, Poland, Morocco, Vietnam and Bangladesh who showed special interest in the Armenian wines exhibited while the exhibition booth was also visited by ministers and members of parliament from Cyprus and Greece who expressed the fraternal relations between Greece, Armenia and Cyprus.

Armenia’s participation was organized by the Hellenic-Armenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Greece under the auspices of the Embassy of Armenia to the Hellenic Republic.

GLENDALE—The “We Are Gyumri” committee announced that the recipients of the 2021-2022 Mina Shirvanian scholarship program have been selected. This academic year the number of scholarship recipients has expanded from 12 to 14. The expansion of the scholarship program was made possible due to the generous donation in the amount of $50,000 by the The Shirvanian Family and Mr. & Mrs. Vahik and Alice Petrossian, 

The “We Are Gyumri” Mina Shirvanian scholarship fund is intended for residents of the Shirak Province to pursue their undergraduate education in their native region. With this scholarship, the campaign hopes to inspire local youth to follow their dreams and strengthen their careers. This year’s scholarship recipients are pursuing their educational degrees in a variety of fields including Language Arts, IT, Journalism, History, Psychology, Applied Arts, and Economics.

As noted in the scholarship guidelines, all scholarship recipients have committed to volunteering at the Shirvanian Youth Center in Gyumri, Armenia. The youth center, since its opening in 2016, has served as a hub for the youth of Gyumri, where they partake in various year-round activities including English language classes, Armenian national dance, computer classes, intellectual clubs and tutoring, art, piano, and guitar classes, as well as events and exhibitions.

‘We Are Gyumri’ Mina Shirvanian 2021-2022 Scholarship Recipients

Hasmik Sargsyan was born in 2001 in Gyumri. She is beginning her 3^rd year at Shirak State University majoring in English/Russian Translation. In her free time she enjoys reading and watching films. She will be volunteering at SYC beginning September.

Alvard Gharibyan was born in 2000 in Gyumri. She is beginning her 3^rd year at Shirak State University majoring in Russian Language and Literature. She enjoys dancing and reading and will be volunteering at SYC beginning September.

• Naira Simonyan
• Maty Zamkochian
• Yelena Hovhannisyan
• Armenuhi Nikoghosyan
• Amalya Mkhitaryan
• Syuzanna Karapetyan
• Ashot Gevorgyan
• Zori Movsisyan
• Zhenya Mirimanyan
• Parandzem Piloyan
• Gohar Galoyan
• Alvard Gharibyan
• Hasmik Sargsyan

Gohar Galoyan was born in 2000 in Gyumri. She is beginning her 3^rd year at Shirak State University majoring in English Language and Literature. In her free time she enjoys drawing and photography and will be volunteering at SYC beginning September.

Parandzem Piloyan was born in 2001 in Akhuryan village. She is beginning her 2^nd year at Shirak State University majoring in Pedagogy. In her free time she enjoys drawing and helping her mother in the village. She will begin volunteering at SYC in September. 

Syuzanna Karapetyan was born in 2002 in Artik. She is beginning her 3^rd year at Armenian State University of Economics majoring in Accountancy. She is a member of ARF AYF and also a counselor at ARF Juniors. She enjoys playing basketball. Syuzanna has officially become a member of Homenetmen scouts and leads the club in Gyumri, and will begin volunteering at SYC in September.  

Amalya Mkhitaryan was born in 2001 in Gyumri. She is beginning her 3^rd year at the Gyumri Branch of Armenian State Economic University majoring in Management. In her free time she enjoys reading and is currently mastering her skills in web design. She will begin volunteering at SYC in September. 

Zori Movsisyan was born in 1999 in Gyumri. He is beginning his 4^th year at the Gyumri Branch of National Polytechnic University of Armenia studying Information Technologies. He enjoys playing football and watching movies.He is a member of AYF takes part in organizing events at SYC. He is a counselor at ARF Juniors and also a member of AYF. From September he will be volunteering at SYC.

Armenuhi  Nikoghosyan was born in 2002 in Gyumri. She studies at Shirak State University majoring in English language and Literature. In September she will be in her 2^nd year. In her free time she likes cooking and listening to music. From September she will be volunteering at SYC.

Mary Zhamakochyan was born in 2002 in Gyumri. She is beginning her 2^nd year at Shirak State University studying English Language and Literature. In her free time Mary enjoys watching movies in foreign languages. She will be volunteering at SYC beginning September.

Yelena Hovhannisyan-was born in 2003 in Kamo village in Shirak region. She is beginning her 1^st year at Shirak State University studying Journalism. Yelena enjoys writing poems and essays. Beginning September she will be volunteering at SYC.

Shushanik Avagyan – was born in 2002 in Akhuryan village in Shirak region. She is beginning her 2^nd year at the Gyumri Branch of Armenian State Academy of Fine Arts majoring in Fashion Design. Shushanik enjoys drawing and knitting, and will begin volunteering at SYC beginning September. 

Ashot Gevorgyan – was born in 2000 in Gyumri. He is beginning his 1^st year at the Gyumri Branch of European University Armenia studying Law. Ashot enjoys playing football, reading and attends cooking classes. He will begin volunteering at SYC in September. 

Zhenya Mirimanyan – was born in 2002 in Gyumri. She is beginning her 2^nd year at the Gyumri Branch of Armenian State Economic University studying Accounting. Zhenya enjoys reading and movie watching. She will begin volunteering at SYC in September.  

Naira Simonyan – was born in 2001 in Gyumri. She will begin her 3^rd year at the Gyumri Branch of European University Armenia studying Psychology. She has also been studying at Tumo center for 5 years. She enjoys reading and listening to music, and will begin volunteering at SYC in September. 

The mission of the “We Are Gyumri” committee is to create a positive and lasting impact on youth in Gyumri, Armenia. The campaign restructured and renovated the Shirvanian Youth Center in Gyumri that had been destroyed during the 1988 Spitak earthquake. A year-round functional program was created at the Center to teach youth in Gyumri everyday skills, to provide them with the essentials they need for a brighter future, and to serve as a bridge between youth in Gyumri and their peers in the Diaspora. As another component of the campaign, the “We Are Gyumri” Mina Shirvanian Scholarship Fund is intended for residents of the Shirak Province to pursue their undergraduate education in their native region. “We are Gyumri” is an ARF Western U.S. Central Committee initiative.