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Copyright © 1998-2002 |
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Copyright © 1998-2002 |
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 Volume
VI, Number 1, 1999Executive Director's CornerBay Area Friends of Armenia just completed its sixth year helping the people of the Republic of Armenia in the areas of Health, Education and Welfare. In this issue of ARIT, BAFA's Board of Directors presents a comprehensive account of how your donations have supported various welfare, medical and school projects. We thank you for continuing to be a true "Friend of Armenia." During the past six years BAFA has had several "angels" who have helped in establishing one of the best orthopedic centers in Yerevan. Francois Antounian reflects on the priceless nature of the "Gifts-in-Kind" that we have received. We have been asked many times as to the exact addresses of the schools BAFA supports in Armenia. In this issue of ARIT you will find the list of schools, their addresses and the amount of support received by each school. Finally, Arman Bernardi reports on how BAFA has entered the world of Cyberspace with its www.bafa.org web site. We encourage you to visit us and send your comments and questions. As Executive Director of BAFA, I thank each one of you for your past support of BAFA programs, and encourage and urge you to continue to help us assist our less privileged and very needy 'hairenagitz's. John Haleblian BAFA Jumps Into The World Wide Web!The world is changing and BAFA is now following the latest direction in dissemination of information in the new electronic world at our new web site: www.bafa.org. In Autumn of '98, we spent a portion of our energies to create a web site for BAFA. Earlier in the summer, the Board of Directors of BAFA approved the registration of the domain name www.bafa.org. What is a domain name? It is an electronic address that can guide anyone in the electronic world to our organization's home information. Why did we build a web site? We built it because we want to inform the world on what we are doing! Our newsletter, ARIT, can only reach a limited number people. Our new web site allows anyone with access to a computer to visit and learn about our organization and its charter, read our newsletter, contact our organization with comments, and even make donations! In addition, our web site outlines detailed descriptions of our three main programs in Armenia (Education, Health and Welfare) including pictures from Armenia representing each of the programs. We continually update our web site with the latest BAFA newsletter, ARIT. BAFA's web site links Armenia and the Bay Area. It provides a clear overview of both the progress that is being made by your donations and the continued need for assistance. The collage of pictures on our web site connects us more intimately to those affected by difficult times in Armenia, and offers us a glimpse of how BAFA programs ARE making a difference. So pass on the word! Our web site is not just for our Bay Area Friends of Armenia. Anyone in the world, including our friends in Armenia, may access our web site where we provide easy mechanisms for obtaining information and communicating with us. The picture on the front page shows our main home page at www.bafa.org.
Of course, it costs money to build and maintain a web site. On that front, we were creative. We negotiated with one of the leading Bay Area Internet Service Providers, Sirius Connections, for a year's worth of free web hosting for BAFA. Thank You Sirius! Additionally, the BAFA Board absorbed all minor costs associated with building the web site. So go to your computer, put on your electronic hat, and visit us at www.bafa.org. there you will witness first hand the positive impact and difference your donations are making in Armenia. Arman Bernardi, Ph.D. Six-Year Report of Bay Area Friends of Armenia Activities within the Republic of ArmeniaYou have been a faithful supporter of the Bay Area Friends of Armenia (BAFA). For your review, the following is a comprehensive report on how your donations have been used in advancing the health, education and welfare within the Republic of Armenia. I. Welfare ProjectsThe welfare of the elderly has been BAFA's primary concern since its inception in 1993. As Table I indicates, BAFA has raised and transmitted $325,100.00 for its Soup Kitchen program during the past six years of operation. Presently the program serves 940 elderly and orphan, one meal a day, for five days a week, in four Soup Kitchens located in Norky Massif and Erebuni areas, Yerevan, Nor Hadjn, Ashtarak, and in two auxiliary locations of Yerevan Polytechnic and Charbach. These Soup Kitchens are managed by the staff of Fund for Armenian Relief. They currently have 20-25 individuals to cook and serve food at the various locations. Sadly, the amount of social security check received by the elderly buys only half a loaf of bread per day. So you can see how our Soup Kitchens go a long way in filling the critical need in the basic survival of the elderly. II. Support to SchoolsThe educational system continues to be in real crisis. Government support which has dwindled to a mere salary for teachers averages less than $15.00 per month, per teacher. No funds are allocated for the upkeep of schools, which are deteriorating due to lack of repair. Additionally, there are no funds for school supplies such as books, paper and pencils. Through your support we have been helping "Michnagarg" schools by contributing approximately $1,000.00 to each. This sum amounts to about 15% of the annual budget of many village schools. During the last several years we have visited some 24 schools, (see accompanying article for details) and transferred to their principals the sum of $31,050.00 dollars. An additional $4,600.00 has been allocated to buy school supplies and to Yerevan State University. We have requested that the funds be allocated to supplement teachers' salaries and to purchase school supplies. III. Medical ProjectsBAFA's medical projects continue to ramp up. Our physicians are now known to be the
best in their field in Armenia. They are asked to consult and to treat complicated cases
where others have had difficulty in resolving. This is a credit to their ability in making
conservative and confident judgements. BAFA has also donated $4,400.00 to the Armenian American Mammography Center in Yerevan, Armenia. It purchased the Kodak 1000 processor unit that develops the films of the mammography detecting early tumors for effective and curative treatments. Finally, we are getting ready to bring our fifth surgeon trainee to UCSF for training in Orthopedic and Trauma surgery. As we all know, there is no substitute for practical and experiential education. So, your continued support and contributions are most welcomed. Table I - Distribution of BAFA Funds for Health, Education & Welfare In Republic of Armenia 1993 - 1998 (x $1,000)
Table I shows that since BAFA's inception, you have contributed a total of $434,100.00, of which $405,200.00 'dollar for dollar,' have been used to support health, education and welfare-related projects in Armenia. We have in our bank account additional funds of $28,900.00 that are allocated to fund future projects. Understandably, you have often asked: "How can you manage to transmit 'dollar for dollar' all of the donations to Armenia? Don't you have operational expenses in the U.S.?" The answer is yes. BAFA employs a part time secretary. Operational expenses (personnel and office-related) incurred in the U.S. have been covered by the BAFA Board members, who in the past six years, have donated $77,300.00. The board members have also paid for their own travel expenses to Armenia on trips to supervise BAFA sponsored projects. None of the achievements of BAFA would have been possible without your generosity. BAFA Board members sincerely appreciate you for serving as a loyal 'Friend of Armenia' over the past six years. Your support at this juncture in the life of the Republic of Armenia has profound effects. We thank you for your continued support. BAFA Board of Directors Bay Area Friends of Armenia Support to Schools in ArmeniaSince 1995 Bay Area Friends of Armenia, as part of its Charter, has been supporting schools in Armenia. Several of our donor friends have asked us to share the locations of these schools. Below is the listing of the 24 schools that BAFA has supported since 1995. The list gives the name of school, address, name of the principal, and the dollar sum donated to each school.
In the early years our attention was directed to schools in Yerevan. As time went on it was brought to our attention that of the almost 1,300 middle schools ( Michnagarg - kindergarten to 10th grade) in Armenia, very few outside of the big cities were helped. In the last few years BAFA's Board has intentionally targeted schools in the Earthquake zone where most of the ruined schools have not been rebuilt, and presently meet in makeshift rooms. The other area includes the Tavoush region located next to the Azeri border. Some of the schools are a stones throw from the Azeri border and have suffered severe physical damage. Along with the students and the teachers of our schools, the BAFA Board thanks each one of you for your concern and support. BAFA Board of Directors "Gifts-in-Kind" Donated to B.A.F.A. Medical ProjectsIn the past several years, even before we organized as B.A.F.A., and since we secured our 501(C)(3) Charitable Status, many companies, individuals and institutions have supported us with money, donation of equipment, and supplies including means of transportation. Of course, behind every one of these corporate and institutional entities was a person instrumental in making it all happen. Many of these individuals are non-Armenians by descent who have big hearts for humanitarian causes. These are individuals who represent the great American spirit that rises to the occasion of need, time and again. We at BAFA have had the pleasure and satisfaction of being the link between our generous donors and those who need it most. The companies, institutions and individuals who helped in securing materials and supplies are so many that I am sure I will not be able to acknowledge them all. But the ones that come to mind are the following:
Donations of equipment and supplies ranged from operating room tables, to antibiotics and analgesics, to total joint prostheses, to surgical instruments and power tools, to arthroscopic instruments. The sum total of the donations is equivalent to millions in US dollars. Of course, we can't put a price on the real value of this generosity. Humanity is so much richer because of the actions and attitudes of these individuals and organizations. A big "THANK YOU" from the Board, as well as, all BAFA supporters and friends. Francois Antounian WE COULD NOT HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU!The Board of Directors of Bay Area Friends of Armenia thanks all individuals and organizations for helping BAFA raise $85,700.00 in 1998.
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