Haykuhi is 18 years old, and is originally from Qashatagh region of Artsakh, Armenia. In September 2019, Haykuhi along with her brother Ara (23) and her sister Oksana (20) moved to Yerevan, so Haykuhi could attend university there. She is enrolled at Yerevan State University, in the first year of Journalism Program. Haykuhi’s brother Ara, works at a furniture store, and this is how they are able to pay for their living expenses, but are unable to save up to pay for Haykuhi’s annual university tuition fee of 410,000 AMD = $1,200 CAD. A donor has paid for Haykuhi’s first year’s first semester (205,000 AMD), which began in autumn of 2019. For the winter semester Haykuhi has qualified to receive a 50% discount on her university tuition fee due to the situation that she is in, which I’ll describe in detail in the next paragraph below. Therefore the tuition fee for her winter semester, which started in January 2020 is 102,500 AMD = $301.47 CAD. Empower Armenia has opted to aid Haykuhi, by paying for her first year’s second semester tuition fee of $301.47, and continue to aid her in the following years as well, until she graduates from the program. The only condition that we’ve put forth is that she needs to study well and receive good grades.

Background:

Haykuhi has five siblings, Karen 32, Ara 23, Ani 22, Oksana 20, (then Haykuhi 18), and Nataly 14 years of age. Haykuhi has had a difficult life; her father passed away when she was only 8 years old, in 2010. Her mother is a survivor of the 1988 Spitak earthquake. Her mother along with her oldest brother (Karen), were stuck under rubble for a few days before they were saved, her mother suffers from PTSD, and her brother Karen from a mental disorder. We were told that their mental illness may very much be due to the suffering they endured during those few days. Shortly after the earthquake Haykuhi’s parents and their only son (Karen) at the time moved to Qashatagh. All children except the oldest son (Karen) have been raised in an orphanage in Qashatagh region of Artsakh. Her mother is very emotionally connected to Karen, and refused to part with him to be sent to the orphanage. Ani, Haykuhi’s older sister has married and has moved to Russia. As mentioned above, in September of 2019, Ara, Oksana and Haykuhi have moved to a rental apartment in Yerevan so Haykuhi could attend university. Nataly (14) is the only sibling still in Qashatagh, living at the orphanage.

“Hello generous donors and supporters of Empower Armenia. I am Anna, a mother of beautiful twin angels. My children are two years old, my son Henry, and my daughter Nataly. Before getting married I had health issues, and I had to undergo two serious spine surgeries. After getting married, my husband and I were unable to have children. After trying for some time, we decided to see a maternity doctor. After taking ineffective medication and treatments, our doctor suggested that I undergo IVF procedure, which would increase our chance of having children. The only challenge was financing the procedure. In Armenia this is an expensive treatment, so we decided to take a bank loan. Unfortunately, the first two tries were unfruitful, however we decided to try and undergo IVF procedure for the third time, and thank God, now we are blessed with our two little angels.

Unfortunately, life presented another challenge for us. My baby boy Henry, has been diagnosed with Hydrocele, which is the swelling in the scrotum that occurs when fluid collects in the thin sheath surrounding a testicle. Henry needs surgery, thankfully such surgeries are free for children in Armenia. However, since we are going through financial hardship at this time, because of the bank repayments of the IVF procedure loans. For this reason, we are unable to pay for the medication and the care that follows the surgery. We have decided to approach ‘Empower Armenia’ for support and any help that they can provide.

Thank you,

Anna.”

As per Anna’s request, we are keeping all personal information and photos of the family offline. Only donors will be able to speak with Anna if they wish so. We are very dedicated to keep all of our project as transparent as possible.

The following are the cost breakdowns, which we are fundraising for. Exchange rate was calculated at $1 CAD = 355 AMD.

This is the second round of dental hygiene project that has been made possible by a generous donor named Maro, who likes to remain anonymous. Empower Armenia thanks Maro, who donated over 240 toothbrushes and 48 toothpastes in 2019 alone; which will be distributed to children well into the next year. The remaining toothpastes will either be purchased by Empower Armenia or will be donated by Maro in the future.

In September of 2019, with the help of Ani Mkrtchyan, a dentist from Yerevan, we are going to visit the elementary school in the village of Noramarg, and give away toothbrushes and toothpaste to 65 children. The dentist will teach the children the correct way to brush their teeth and the benefits that come with dental hygiene. We will also discuss the dangers of smoking and the damage that it causes to our oral health and other vital organs in the body. Empower Armenia will use part of the left over funds from 2019 School Supplies project to pay for additional toothpaste to cover the 65 children.

Together we can Empower Armenia, One Project at a Time.

Post Project Remarks:

This project was completed successfully on 2^nd of September, 2019. Empower Armenia with the leadership of our project manager Lusine Avanesyan, was able to deliver toothbrushes and toothpastes to 65 children in the village of Noramarg, in the Ararat Province of Armenia.

Our volunteer dentist, Ani Mkrtchyan from Yerevan volunteered with us for the second time this year, and taught the children the proper way to brush their teeth. Dr. Ani also spoke to the children about the dangers of smoking and the damage that it causes to vital organs. We will continue this project in 2020. We thank all of our volunteers who made this project possible.

This project did not require additional financial donations, since all the toothbrushes and toothpastes were donated, and deficiencies were covered from surplus from previous projects mentioned above. The transportation costs were paid for by donations leftover from the transportation portion of our 2019 School Supplies project.

Project spending breakdown:

Since our first project in 2014, one of our main goals has been to enable individuals from underprivileged families to receive a higher education at their desired university or college. Building hospitals and schools are great; however, they require professionals to operate, and together we can help young professionals in Armenia to accomplish their dreams. After five years of conducting charitable work in Armenia, we like to announce our very first university fund project.

This fundraising is being conducted for Mariam Khachaturyan of Mush village, located in the Qashatagh region of Armenia. Mariam’s family is in a difficult financial situation due to her mother’s illness. Her mother is diagnosed with 2^nd stage ovarian cancer. Mariam graduated high school this year, and is working at their family farm with her father and siblings to make ends meet. She had no hopes of entering university, but she was dreaming in becoming a teacher.

We met Mariam in June 2019; when we were delivering school supplies to the younger children at her school, part of our 2019 School Supplies Project. She was part of the school choir who welcomed us by singing a few songs. By promising Mariam that we would provide financial support, she applied to Artsakh State University, and successfully passed the entrance exams. Since the round trip to the university from Mush village is about 300km, Mariam would have to move to Stepanakert. Because of her mother’s condition, Mariam decided that she would attend the first year of university online (long distance learning), so she could be at home with her mother, and support her while studding.

The breakdown of the costs are as follow:

Notes:

1. It costs 250,000 dram ($704 CAD) per year to attend university. The reason for the tuition fee being lower than usual is because Mariam will be studying through “Long Distance Learning”, which means Mariam will be attending university online from her village, rather than relocate to Stepanakert. If Mariam desires, next year she will have the option of relocating to Stepanakert to continue her remaining of studies at the university.
2. Empower Armenia purchased a laptop for Mariam from Canada. Currently, she doesn’t have any computer at home (desktop or laptop). Since she will be studying through Long Distance Learning at least the first year of her studies, we decided to purchase a laptop for her, so she can have it with her during exam periods in Stepanakert as well.
3. We had initially for seen 250,000 AMD = $704 CAD for her laptop since the laptop purchased was cheaper, the difference will be going towards paying a portion of Mariam’s textbooks.
4. Mariam will have to travel to the university in Stepanakert during exam season twice a year, for at least two weeks to write her exams. During this time, she will be staying in Stepanakert, and there are expenses associated with this, which Empower Armenia will be covering for.

Post-project remarks

As you may know, Mariam’s mother was ill with ovarian cancer. Unfortunately her mother passed away after a long a difficult battle with her illness. Mariam fought through this difficult time, and completed her first year of studies.  Her dream of becoming a teacher is one step closer because of your support. To see the details on the fundraising for her second year of studies please click here.

Since our first project in 2014, one of our main goal has been to enable individuals from underprivileged families to receive a higher education at their desired university or college. Building hospitals and schools are great; however, they require professionals to operate, and together we can help young professionals in Armenia to accomplish their dreams.  Thanks to our donors’ continuous support, we were able to successfully sponsor Mariam attend her first year of studies at Artsakh University.

Laptop-Receipt.pdf

Qashatagh Museum is located in the city of Berdzor. Berdzor is located in South East part of Armenia, near the Syunik province. Berdzor is a province capital, and its museum holds beautiful ancient artifacts, ranging from large to small clay pots for wine making or wheat storage. Various ceremonial artifacts, metal works, rugs and more, which some date back to the first millennium B.C.; You may visit their facebook page here.

While we were visiting Qashatagh to deliver school supplies to the children in the surrounding villages (see our 2019 School Projects for more details) we noticed the room mentioned above doesn’t have any electrical power. After a quick investigation and a discussion with the director of the museum Lilith Qocharyan, we realized that the problem can be fixed with a small contribution, which their budget didn’t allow. So we decided to take action and provide some support to this dedicated director and her awesome team. We pre-funded the project on the spot and the lights were back on in the room a few days later. You may see the great results in the photos below.

We are looking to raise 46,590 AMD, which is equal to $133 CAD. For project cost break down, please see the table below. The amounts were calculated at $1 CAD at 350 AMD exchange rate. Photos of the available receipts are also shown below.

Empower Armenia would like to take this opportunity to thank the amazing people who made this project possible, Lilith Qocharyan, the museum director, and Nelli Martirosyan for introducing us to this mesmerizing region of Armenia, and its great people. If you have any questions or concerns please contact us at info@EmpowerArmenia.com or message us on our facebook page: Empower Armenia.

The museum needs a projector, to enable the museum to show educational videos to school children, the general public and the tourists. The museum will be able to show videos of their previous excavations and findings. They will be able to raise awareness in the local population regarding ancient artifacts in the region.

We have purchased a BenQ Data Projector model (MS535A) on sale, for $395 CAD (including 13% HST). Please see the photos for the purchase receipt and more details.

If you have any questions or concerns please contact us at info@EmpowerArmenia.com or message us on our facebook page: Empower Armenia.