NEW YORK — More than 450 persons from around the world gathered here on December 17 for the 19th Annual Children of Armenia Fund (COAF) Holiday Gala, this year with the theme “Building a Nation.” After two years of virtual galas, due to the pandemic, this year’s event was met with enormous generosity once again, raising an astounding $6 million to support COAF’s rural development projects in Armenia.
The evening, hosted by KTTV FOX11’s “Good Day L.A.” Anchor Araksya Karapetyan and COAF Senior Director of Development Haig Boyadjian at Cipriani – 25 Broadway, featured tantalizing musical performances by world renowned musicians — violinist Ara Malikian (Spain) and cellist Sevak Avanesyan (Armenia). Musical guests included 12-year-old cellist Lyanna Ulikhanyan and 13-year-old violinist Davit Babayan from Armenia who delivered heartwarming performances.
One of the highlights of the evening was when high school students Anna Rafayelyan from the village of Lanjik (Shirak region) and Artur Simonyan from the village of Arteni (Aragatsotn region) took the stage to share with everyone the impact COAF has made in their lives. They touched upon the various COAF programs that have empowered them to try their best and study hard to become successful so that they strengthen their country.
This year’s Humanitarian Award was presented to benefactors Peter and Marilyn Sarkesian of Michigan in recognition of their generous contributions to COAF’s various education and healthcare programs, including the establishment of several cafeterias in rural schools, and the establishment of the Regional Health Center in Dsegh village, Lori province.
All funds will go towards enhancing the quality of life of village youth and their families through COAF’s education, health, psychosocial support, and economic development initiatives. For nearly two decades, COAF’s classic village-based and SMART programs have demonstrated their expendability, sustainability and scalability. Each rural population of 100,000 requires a capital budget of $15 million and an annual budget of $2 million. The $15 million capital budget is allocated towards the construction of COAF’s SMART complexes in each rural region, while the organization’s $2 million annual budget covers operational expenditures.
COAF’s goal is to expand its reach to all of rural Armenia’s population of over one million. To date, the organization has served over 100,000 people in 5 regions of the country. To serve the entire population of Armenia will require an expenditure of $150 million for capital expenses and an annual budget of approximately
