CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — On Friday, May 11, under the auspices of Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern), a Celebration of a Life of Service on the occasion of the 60th Anniversary of the Ordination to the Priesthood of Rev. Father Mampre A. Kouzouian will take place at Holy Trinity Armenian Church of Greater Boston, 145 Brattle St.
Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, will be present to celebrate this significant milestone marking Father Mampre’s 60 years of dedicated service and commitment to the Armenian Church and its people.
The traditional Hrashapar Service will be held at 6 p.m. in the sanctuary to welcome the catholicos. Clergy from New England will be called on to participate. Doors to the Sanctuary will open at 5:30 p.m. All are invited to attend.
The 60th Anniversary Celebration Banquet follows in the Charles and Nevart Talanian Cultural Hall at 7:15 p.m. Advance reservations are required for the Banquet. To receive an invitation to attend the Banquet, please contact the Holy Trinity Church Office by emailing office@htaac.org.
At Father Mampre’s request, funds will be raised to support two causes, “close to my heart:” the children at the Muratsan Chemotherapy Clinic of Yerevan State Medical University, a pediatric oncology clinic that treats children from all over Armenia, as well as homeless individuals and families in the Vagharshapat region surrounding Holy Echmiadzin.
“In May 2017, I was in Armenia,” as Father Mampre shares. “This was my 16th visit to our Motherland and I chose to journey to the hospitals and the abandoned buildings where the homeless dwell in Yerevan. During my visit to the Muratsan Children’s Cancer Clinic, innocent young children living with cancer, without their hair as a result of their treatment, were with their parents on their routine visits. The children were in pain, suffering from this cancerous disease. I couldn’t stand it. After I said my prayers on each child, I came out of their rooms and cried like a child. I couldn’t accept what I saw. These children are God’s gifts to their parents, to our Nation, to our Motherland, and to our Churches. During that stay, I also went to visit the homeless individuals and families of the Vagharshapat region surrounding Holy Echmiadzin. I went to the dilapidated old buildings where homeless people dwell in very small rooms. There were young children with one or both parents living in these run-down, vacant buildings without water, electricity or bathrooms. For me, it was totally unacceptable to see human beings living in these conditions. Here too, I cried like a child feeling so sorry for our own people living in these conditions. I started thinking of how I can be of help to our children and our people that I visited. I thought that the gifts that my friends would want to send me, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of my ordination, should be used to support both the cancer-stricken children being cared for at the Muratsan Children’s Cancer Clinic in Yerevan as well as the homeless individuals and families with children in the Vagharshapat region surrounding Holy Echmiadzin. That’s the reason why I am appealing to you for your financial support to join in my cause to help our children and homeless of our Motherland.”
