NEW YORK — On February 27, 2021, and for first time in its more than a century-old history, the biennial AGBU General Assembly broke tradition by taking its proceedings entirely online. Given the lingering presence of Covid-19, now in its second year and still persisting in hotspots across the globe, the AGBU Central Board agreed to harness the power of virtual technology to unite its worldwide membership remotely.
Thanks to the expertise of the AGBU Armenian Virtual College (AVC), hundreds of participants from 32 countries were able to connect through Zoom with the benefit of simultaneous translation from English to Armenian, French and Spanish.
“Ever since the Coronavirus outbreak last year, AGBU has proven itself an agile and inventive force online. Since then, we learned that we not only could continue our mission but also extend our reach to ever larger segments of the communities we serve,” said Central Board Member and Secretary Sarkis Jebejian, who served as the meeting’s Master of Ceremonies.
Following the welcome remarks, Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, conveyed his blessing wishing the Assembly a successful meeting and emphasized the important role of the AGBU in the life of the Armenian Nation.
As usual, the official agenda included a report of the consolidated financials for the period 2018 and 2019 by AGBU Central Board Treasurer Nazareth Festekjian and an activities report for the same cycle by Central Board member and Assistant Secretary Arda Haratunian. A report highlighting AGBU’s work in education, in particular the immense contributions of AVC to Armenian education over the past ten years since its inception, was presented by Central Board member Lena Sarkissian. A brief question and answer session followed addressing issues raised by the membership in advance of the meeting.
There were also salutes to three AGBU groups, for which AGBU President Berge Setrakian took pride in recognizing for their extraordinary sacrifices of time and expertise during critical moments in 2020. This included District Committee and its Chairman Gerard Tufenkjian, and entire AGBU Lebanon community who redefined the meaning of civic engagement in Lebanon after the explosion at the Port in Beirut last August. In addition, Setrakian thanked AGBU scouts across the globe for their hard work and community service throughout an incredibly challenging time locally and globally. “We are lucky to have them wear the badge of AGBU and represent us so well,” Setrakian, a former AGBU scout leader himself, remarked. Finally, the AGBU Young Professionals were singled out for their display of leadership when the pandemic hit, proactively finding ways to keep connected, as well as provide forums for important exchanges on timely topics.