Editorial: Rest in Peace, Moorad

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In the months since Moorad Mooradian’s health took a turn for the worse, his wife, Lillian, would call or e-mail once a week or once every two weeks to tell me when the next column would come.

One of the few things in life Moorad could not do well was type. Therefore, Lillian would type each and every column, let him edit the column, incorporate those corrections and then send them off.

For the past month, no such message came. As Lillian was always so meticulous when it came to sending the columns, I suspected the worst, yet still hoped for the best.

It is with profound sadness that I know now there won’t be any more columns by Moorad Mooradian, our longtime columnist, on page 19. Moorad and Harut Sassounian, together, have led us to have a terrific opinion page, one which I automatically designated “H&M” on the page map I would draw up every week. It has been a page to which many people turn first.

Moorad was a charming man with a booming voice who was dedicated to his family and his country. This at-times conservative man had a tremendously open mind which could embrace opinions other than his own. In other words, if you could present a logical viewpoint to him, he could be convinced, without prejudice.

He had the posture of someone who has served in the armed forces — which he did proudly for decades. He was a natural teacher, enriching the lives of students at West Point, George Mason and Yerevan State universities, as well as his readers in this paper and others.

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He was a man who was trained in the art of war, yet relished peace through conflict negotiation. Had he been healthier, he would have been writing up a storm about the Protocols.

He and Lillian had a wonderful relationship, which after almost five decades of marriage, still seemed fresh, yet with the depth of ease that living together for such a long time creates.

They were a lovely team together and had raised a loving family.

It is fitting that his last column, which appeared in the July 18 edition, was about a group that he was passionate about: The Armenia Tree Project.

Our condolences go to Lillian and their children, grandchildren and one great-grandchild, as well as to all those in Virginia, Rhode Island and Armenia, where they lived at various times and whose lives they touched.

I feel privileged to have known Moorad. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.

— Alin K. Gregorian

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