Haig Merian

Description

Interviewed by Roger Hagopian and Dan Merian in 2007. Many thanks to Ella Russell for her transcription of the interview and to Jennifer Zeil for her work on the subtitling. Without their help we would not have been able to host this interview in it's present form.

Transcription

00:00:00:21 - 00:00:09:10
I am Haig Merian, born in Armenia, now living here in America.

00:00:09:10 - 00:00:12:09
That’s good. That’s good. Okay.

00:00:13:24 - 00:00:22:15
I born in 1918, in Armenia, the village Tsovinar.

00:00:23:06 - 00:00:30:21
Before I born, my father and
mother had three children.

00:00:30:21 - 00:00:43:03
In 1918, the cholera sickness spreaded whole world, which took 38 million people, died.

00:00:43:03 - 00:01:00:04
And my father, mother had two sons: Andranik, Yegor, and
sister—a daughter—Gulkhannam. They all die in that year, before I born.

00:01:01:11 - 00:01:16:23
After I born, so then—afterwards, my father, mother gived birth to my two sisters and brother.

00:01:18:02 - 00:01:22:08
Three sister and brother, excuse me. And then—

00:01:23:10 - 00:01:24:26
—What were their names?

00:01:24:26 - 00:01:38:20
Well, Anoush, Tamar, GulKhannam, and then brother Gividon.

00:01:40:13 - 00:01:49:25
So, we grew up in village, Tsovinar, exactly the lake, the shore of Sevana lich.

00:01:50:15 - 00:01:54:01
Yes, Lake Sevan, right on the shore.

00:01:56:03 - 00:01:58:26
We had our land, that time.

00:01:59:20 - 00:02:12:27
My father, mother, working hard in village to cultivate
the land, the wheat, harvesting the wheat.

00:02:13:15 - 00:02:24:27
A year, cabbage, potatoes, all the fruits and living
very heartily on that, so.

00:02:25:16 - 00:02:33:12
The houses was black walls, no electricity or anything in it

00:02:33:12 - 00:02:53:21
so, and we had—making fire by wood or animals’ dirt, which—drying out and making—cooking our food—on it—

00:02:53:21 - 00:02:56:20
my mother cooking the food and feeding us.

00:02:56:20 - 00:03:13:22
We had completely dirt floor also and using straw, which built together putting on earth and then putting our mattresses and clothes to sleep in the floor also.

00:03:15:24 - 00:03:36:00
This way, we keeping living so, and finally, when I grow up, I started school, and started elementary school, and then I continued the school.

00:03:38:01 - 00:04:00:13
And until—it was—I graduated when the—and then I helped my sisters and brother to go school too.

00:04:00:25 - 00:04:17:16
And finally, in 1930, when the communists come, they took away every small piece of the land that we had, put in collective farm.

00:04:18:17 - 00:04:21:16
We didn’t have control over our land anymore.

00:04:21:16 - 00:04:31:28
Just a little bit, right close around the house, which we had cabbage and potatoes planting so.

00:04:32:19 - 00:04:39:08
The life turning to be very, very hard to live in Armenia, to live in the village.

00:04:39:21 - 00:04:50:03
And lot of people from Armenia, including my village, my father mother took me from the school

00:04:50:08 - 00:05:01:02
took me, my sisters and brothers, and we immigrated
to Nagorno-Karabakh.

00:05:03:13 - 00:05:15:11
We landed in Margushevan, in Karabakh, which was
Russian—who producing synthetic caoutchouc.

00:05:16:05 - 00:05:17:19
Synthetic caoutchouc.

00:05:17:19 - 00:05:27:01
We work on the farm and the synthetic caoutchouc, they sent Russia and Armenia to produce rubber.

00:05:28:14 - 00:05:35:02
We were down there about two years.

00:05:35:05 - 00:05:46:14
I was down there with my family, and then finally, I decided that I have to go back to Armenia in a school.

00:05:46:20 - 00:05:55:29
I did come back to my house and my cousins living there with them so, and I started school.

00:05:56:16 - 00:06:10:08
I went high school, graduate high school with 36 subjects, every one of them excellent

00:06:11:10 - 00:06:25:15
and then I decided that time that I will go and teaching in institute in Gavar, which is a district of Armenia.

00:06:26:14 - 00:06:34:24
And then after one year I studied down there, my family still in Karabakh

00:06:35:10 - 00:06:47:28
and then I—it was—climate is so hard and we are
in Lake Sevan with mountains which was cold.

00:06:48:18 - 00:07:01:07
My sisters and brothers, they got sick, and then my family move back to the village and our house.

00:07:02:18 - 00:07:09:24
And that time, I decided to go University of Yerevan

00:07:09:24 - 00:07:23:18
which, if you have completely graduate all subjects excellent, you will go without any examination and you will stay in Yerevan.

00:07:24:20 - 00:07:32:29
The houses, the curtains, the food and everything, free supply, and so on.

00:07:34:13 - 00:07:41:12
Then, unfortunately, I didn’t liked the climate of the university.

00:07:41:21 - 00:07:48:06
One year later on, I didn’t feel well. I will come back so.

00:07:48:20 - 00:07:59:05
Because in Nagorno-Karabakh, because was Russians who down there and working, I did learn Russian languages, so.

00:07:59:24 - 00:08:16:16
When I come back,so—then, I was promoted to a teacher to our—close to my village, near the village, which called Verkeen, Arichalo.

00:08:16:29 - 00:08:18:16
I was teacher there.

00:08:18:22 - 00:08:40:07
And then finally the Russians, that time to come enlist, called me up and took me from the college in the teaching to—to the army, so.

00:08:42:14 - 00:08:53:21
This—this was in the village situation, and of
course my father, mother, after putting the children in, was sick.

00:08:53:26 - 00:09:00:24
I lost my brother and my one sister, so.

00:09:01:27 - 00:09:08:10
And then still, we had—I had two sisters left, and myself, so.

00:09:11:15 - 00:09:15:21
Do you remember—you remember where your family came from?

00:09:17:00 - 00:09:23:02
My family, of course, that time. To answer the question where they come from: the village.

00:09:23:16 - 00:09:34:22
And finally, one of my friend which studies school with me so, he got deep to the family, the places

00:09:35:12 - 00:09:45:28
and they heard that all our people come from, Alashkert, in Turkey, close to Van and Mush.

00:09:47:21 - 00:09:59:07
And they established themselves right to the Tsovinar, the shore of Lake Sevan.

00:10:01:28 - 00:10:06:13
How many years ago did they come, migrate, to the village?

00:10:07:19 - 00:10:10:10
Well I would say, so in what years they come?

00:10:11:14 - 00:10:13:16
Couple hundred years?

00:10:13:16 - 00:10:18:15
Possible, that time what is the massacres and everything (late 1800s?).

00:10:18:15 - 00:10:22:16
Plus, when they started moving, or they come before that, so.

00:10:24:12 - 00:10:26:18
Did you know your grandparents?

00:10:27:05 - 00:10:29:17
No I didn’t—I didn’t see them, so no.

00:10:30:27 - 00:10:34:14
They died, before I born, so.

00:10:37:11 - 00:10:45:07
And I had my cousins, father mother, my father’s brother’s children.

00:10:45:29 - 00:10:54:02
That time when their father and mother died in cholera sickness, my—my parents help them to grow up, so.

00:10:59:08 - 00:11:04:18
Did you hear—?
—That’s, the whole situation then.

00:11:05:14 - 00:11:11:03
Then they started working in collective farm.

00:11:11:03 - 00:11:29:08
Collective farm, to get the land away, the animals away and everything, and you have to work in collective farm on whole year, and they counting how many day you work.

00:11:29:24 - 00:11:35:26
Then end of the year the collective farm will divide the supplies.

00:11:36:09 - 00:11:38:12
The wheat—

00:11:39:23 - 00:11:53:22
The wheat, the milk, the—the fruit, and everything, by how many days you putted on it, that amount.

00:11:53:22 - 00:11:57:26
And it was not enough, so.

00:11:57:27 - 00:12:08:29
and the people almost having very, very difficult times so—for lives.

00:12:09:15 - 00:12:24:27
But luckily, we hadded little bit land beside our house, and I produced, my father mother produced, the cabbage and potatoes, and we live on that way.

00:12:27:25 - 00:12:33:22
The life wasn’t easy, so everything was tough so, that’s it.

00:12:34:03 - 00:12:41:04
But I was teaching so I was helping the—the family as much as possible, so.

00:12:42:14 - 00:12:52:29
Then—then afterwards of course, they took me in army, so.

00:12:55:10 - 00:13:07:05
That time they checked up, said “we will not take you because of all the family”, stuff like that, but in two months later on they come and tooked me, so.

00:13:08:27 - 00:13:22:12
I went with the boat, Lake Sevan to the Yelenovka, it’s close to Yerevan—

00:13:23:04 - 00:13:33:01
So—and from Yerevan they took me, the army, and sent me to Belarus.

00:13:34:01 - 00:13:49:23
And, I was sended the army, military school so—and I really—I don’t know if I will say anymore about it, so.

00:13:52:29 - 00:13:56:04
Want to stop? Let’s stop for a minute.

00:13:57:14 - 00:13:59:22
This thing, it’s not important, so.

00:13:59:23 - 00:14:04:00
Well, I mean, if you remember something from your childhood, uh, you know.

00:14:05:00 - 00:14:11:01
What was your family day like? Like, your mother, what would she do in the morning? What did—what was the day like?

00:14:11:01 - 00:14:18:13
Well, I think so that she had to work during the daytime, cooking all day long, so.

00:14:19:22 - 00:14:22:02
Who took care of the animals?

00:14:22:21 - 00:14:25:08
Well, they didn’t have any more animals to take care of.

00:14:25:12 - 00:14:32:09
This was collective farm in one place,
and they hired my father will take care of them.

00:14:32:09 - 00:14:39:08
But he knew there many more, so it belonged to collective farm.

00:14:40:08 - 00:14:47:00
So that’s it, they take him away that sort of thing—they were working and they giving him working day.

00:14:47:20 - 00:14:53:02
They end the year, they dividing—and the food and everything so to the people.

00:14:54:23 - 00:14:58:10
What holidays did you celebrate? The holidays.

00:14:58:10 - 00:15:00:15
Did they make special food on the holiday?

00:15:00:28 - 00:15:02:13
Well of course they did, so.

00:15:02:24 - 00:15:08:13
Of course, we don’t have much about anything so—we had—we had—we had the church.

00:15:08:24 - 00:15:29:04
So, I knew in my house, one thing that happened in my house, in my family, that, my grand—grandfather was horseriding on shore of the Lake Sevan.

00:15:29:29 - 00:15:43:06
So, he look the light going up and coming down, light going up and down, and with his horse he going closer, closer.

00:15:43:06 - 00:15:49:09
Finally the light come down and stay in the floor, so—on shore of Lake Sevan

00:15:49:09 - 00:16:04:05
and he jump out from his horse and see it was a Bible, which had old crosses on it, and it was shining light on it.

00:16:04:18 - 00:16:15:23
He took that Bible up and brought my house one of little room from the hallway.

00:16:18:10 - 00:16:30:00
Make a special room for the Bible, build up a place completely, and have Bible down there.

00:16:30:19 - 00:16:47:01
From that time on when I growing up, any child was sick in village, and they will call up a priest and bring the child to the—my house and that room

00:16:49:01 - 00:16:55:11
and they called Zahari Avederan. So, Avederan is Bible.

00:16:56:02 - 00:17:05:15
And bring down there and priest will open up the Bible reading the head and stuff like that

00:17:05:15 - 00:17:13:03
and taking child back, when he’s sick, and
child was wonderful, so. And beautiful.

00:17:14:12 - 00:17:23:15
And still—and still in my house, there still the Bible existing, so.

00:17:23:15 - 00:17:41:08
and my cousins were beside that, running that even now, so the people go and see if somebody have a sickness the child, eyes putting back and forth,

00:17:41:08 - 00:17:51:08
they had the special things on—like in threshold, between the hallway and the room.

00:17:52:13 - 00:18:09:16
And then, the priest standing, reading, and I used to give a hammer in my hand, the big nail, and rolling child’s head on the cloth and hitting the nails to the threshold.

00:18:09:16 - 00:18:17:01
And afterwards, the child’s eyes never move anymore.
Were in beautiful shape, so.

00:18:23:08 - 00:18:28:09
What happened to the church in your village?
You had one church, two churches?

00:18:28:09 - 00:18:32:06
Two churches and—
—Do you know the names?
And it closed, everything about it.

00:18:32:06 - 00:18:34:10
Do you know the name of the church?
—Soorp.

00:18:34:10 - 00:18:40:07
Soorp Hagop, Tsovinar, so.
—Well what happened?

00:18:40:07 - 00:18:45:11
They closed the church. People cannot go there about anymore religion
—Who closed?
—government.

00:18:47:03 - 00:18:50:02
What happened, did people protest?

00:18:50:08 - 00:18:57:29
It doesn’t help anything, so—so—so. It’s closed—the people afraid. Anybody like me afraid, so.

00:18:57:29 - 00:19:13:16
Then finally in nineteen hundred and—nineteen hundred and three six 1936, they come and took the Bible from my house.

00:19:13:20 - 00:19:28:28
They said, “We will take this one up or you will never live here,” so—and “We will take this one and put in Yerevan on the—”

00:19:29:08 - 00:19:32:06
What’s the name of it—?
—Yeah, what it’s called—?

00:19:32:06 - 00:19:34:09
Matenadaran.
—Matenadaran

00:19:34:09 - 00:19:47:16
It will be down there. And you will not have any more people walking here, so—to worship and so on—but that’s the way they explain on it.

00:19:47:16 - 00:19:56:01
In other words—he said we will prison your father and you so you will not have this anymore, so.

00:19:56:01 - 00:19:59:16
This was the government that did this?
—Yes

00:19:59:16 - 00:20:04:29
But it was being brought to not Etchmiadzin is it possible?
—The governor’s government.

00:20:04:29 - 00:20:09:27
National government to the state depository?
—Yeah.

00:20:10:11 - 00:20:15:03
You know, even the Turks allowed Armenians to have churches.
—Yeah.

00:20:15:03 - 00:20:19:09

Even though, the Turks burned the churches, I mean it isn’t—but the Turks allowed them.

00:20:20:02 - 00:20:31:26
Nobody going to church anymore, so the church stay down there but the doors close and people not go to church and they don’t have it—

00:20:31:26 - 00:20:37:15
So they collectivized the land. Did the people protest in the village when they started taking your land away?

00:20:37:27 - 00:20:45:28
Well, everybody will take it away so a lot of them protested, they prison and sending them away.

00:20:46:20 - 00:20:55:04
Lot of people who were a little bit, have more animals, they called them wealthy villagers.

00:20:55:04 - 00:21:04:02
They’d, every one of them take away from them and send everyone over them Siberia, everybody died down there in Russia.

00:21:04:02 - 00:21:07:01
They never come back. So thousands, thousand peoples.

00:21:07:02 - 00:21:12:08
The priests too, right?
—Yeah, the priests too.

00:21:12:08 - 00:21:23:25
Sending priests too so you cannot preach or anything, so you will not see any more priests around. So that was the situation,so.

00:21:23:25 - 00:21:34:19
That was communist rule which took away everything so—from individuals. That’s the way it is, so—

00:21:34:19 - 00:21:39:13
I was thinking, to go from Turkey, hundreds of years in Turkey—
—Yeah

00:21:39:13 - 00:21:44:20
And now this.
—Yes, that’s it, exactly, yeah that’s it. That’s it.

00:21:44:20 - 00:21:47:27
Armenians must have felt like they are never going to be free.

00:21:47:27 - 00:21:54:18
No unfortunately, that’s the worst—have difficulties continuing.

00:21:55:12 - 00:21:58:03
It’s difficult but at least you’re living to see a free Armenia.

00:21:58:03 - 00:22:01:27
Yeah that’s it so—independent Armenia so that’s it.

00:22:02:20 - 00:22:07:22
Sorry I’m getting involved because it’s—I’m getting involved with your story—

00:22:07:22 - 00:22:10:14
Yeah, yeah, that’s it.
—It’s quite a story.

00:22:10:14 - 00:22:12:05
That’s it.

00:22:13:13 - 00:22:19:02
Anything else you want to say about the village, the sense of—?

00:22:20:15 - 00:22:23:14
Nothing else what is if there is any—

00:22:27:03 - 00:22:33:07
Any other traditions they used to do, or foodwise, what did they eat?


00:22:33:07 - 00:22:34:24
Well, that’s the—

00:22:34:24 - 00:22:38:03
What was their mostly staple food, you know?

00:22:38:28 - 00:22:54:29
Maybe just potatoes and cabbage so. I, when I was going high school, so mother cooking boiling potatoes and I didn’t have anything else to take.

00:22:55:18 - 00:23:00:20
The village in high school it’s close village not my village.

00:23:01:08 - 00:23:09:03
I have to walk six miles away to go to school down
there in high school.

00:23:09:24 - 00:23:22:06
And what I do, I take one boiled potato with me. That was my lunch and everything. So until I finish the school and walk back to come home, that’s it.

00:23:23:24 - 00:23:26:23
That was a whole different situation.

00:23:27:04 - 00:23:31:15
I cry to think about them, so that’s it—that’s it.

00:23:34:03 - 00:23:40:22
What about doctors in the village or medical people?
—There’s no doctors, no doctor existing.

00:23:41:07 - 00:23:44:06
No doctors or anything, so—and

00:23:44:27 - 00:23:57:24
a little while I grow up, when I grow up, so if somebody have to sick they have to drive the center of the area,

00:23:59:03 - 00:24:03:09
which is center, say Martuni—Martuni Rayon.

00:24:03:09 - 00:24:14:20
And that center of this, the place—that was village too, but it was little bigger to be in control of the surrounding villages.

00:24:15:12 - 00:24:31:03
taking them to doctor so—taking 7–8 hours and not to work person to go down there, to have doctor help.

00:24:31:11 - 00:24:37:09
They didn’t have much doctor here too. The dentist or anything, so not existing, so.

00:24:39:05 - 00:24:42:05
That’s it. You‘re sick, you’re just—

00:24:42:05 - 00:24:45:04
—In the Lake Sevan, did you have fish from the lake?

00:24:45:09 - 00:24:47:02
Oh yes, we had Ishkhan.

00:24:47:17 - 00:24:52:24
We had—that’s what we used—even I going to fishing too.

00:24:53:05 - 00:25:01:11
The Lake Sevan has the most wonderful fish we had it in the world, called that Ishkhan dzuk.

00:25:02:11 - 00:25:04:00
Ishkhan dzuk, so.

00:25:04:18 - 00:25:15:24
That, then again, the Soviet Union started bring the Russia, or the capital, bring different fishes, putting on it.

00:25:16:00 - 00:25:30:19
And kill all the beautiful—our fishes so—and have the other type fishes down there. So, they mix up, and they didn’t allow the people to go to shore and to fish.

00:25:31:00 - 00:25:44:07
They said there’s collective farm—the group of the people with a small boat. They’re sitting, fishing, and they belong to the government.

00:25:44:07 - 00:25:51:11
Anything they fish, they bring, they take away and then sending to Russia.

00:25:53:02 - 00:25:59:15
That’s the whole thing—that was communist rule. That’s-

00:26:00:22 - 00:26:09:11
In the house, in your home, was the—heated by the oven—with the oven, where was the oven? In the floor?

00:26:09:11 - 00:26:11:27
Oven was a hole in the middle of the room.

00:26:12:00 - 00:26:15:05
What was it called?
—Tonir, tonir.

00:26:15:26 - 00:26:29:12
And then, it’s a year round when the people had the animal making the dirt when they do—going bathroom stuff like that.

00:26:29:12 - 00:26:39:18
All that things they took, put them together, and put outside and break them standing up

00:26:39:18 - 00:26:46:09
putting—like you putting asphalt in a drive or something, like that.

00:26:47:03 - 00:26:51:01
And people stepping on and stuff like that,

00:26:52:08 - 00:27:01:05
until the whole summer when they dry up and then the people go and cut them up and put small pieces

00:27:01:17 - 00:27:14:24
and that’s where that going to make fire and the tonir that you have, and you have to cook the foods and stuff like that on top of it with that stuff.

00:27:17:00 - 00:27:19:12
And you would sleep, where would you sleep?

00:27:20:12 - 00:27:22:22
In the house.
—Around the tonir?

00:27:22:22 - 00:27:25:07
Right close to the tonir.

00:27:25:07 - 00:27:31:24
Yeah, sort of thing. It was all the heat we had and so this sort of thing.

00:27:34:01 - 00:27:37:16
Did you have many uncles, aunts?

00:27:40:05 - 00:27:45:18
No, I didn’t—don’t have—
—Your mother’s brothers? Father’s brothers?

00:27:45:18 - 00:27:48:03
Yes, yeah, yeah, I have. The mothers—

00:27:48:03 - 00:27:55:28
Do you know their names?
—Brothers, aunts or so—They’re, well I forgot some names so, let’s think.

00:27:58:09 - 00:28:05:08
Well one of them was Hayrabed Sarkis. Kevork.

00:28:07:05 - 00:28:10:29
Did they—?
—My mother had two brothers also.

00:28:10:29 - 00:28:17:07
They were living that time that I knew them so—but they died. And the children.

00:28:17:07 - 00:28:22:11
Was the family with each other all the time? Like, did the relatives come and visit a lot?

00:28:22:11 - 00:28:29:04
Yeah, they’d go to each other’s house, so—I think to be together to help each other.

00:28:29:04 - 00:28:35:06
But I think, nothing they have to help, but that’s it. Everybody didn’t have.

00:28:35:06 - 00:28:39:10
Everybody had the same condition so—that’s it.

00:28:40:16 - 00:28:51:03
I have a question about money. Under the Soviet rule, Armenia—there was an Armenian Soviet republic.

00:28:51:04 - 00:28:52:01
Yes

00:28:52:01 - 00:28:58:05
But so the Armenians, when they came in, were there Armenians who were in charge?

00:28:58:16 - 00:29:03:08
I mean, or were there Russians and Armenians together in charge of Armenia?

00:29:03:18 - 00:29:06:06
No, the Armenians, Armenians so—

00:29:06:06 - 00:29:15:11
Armenians?
—Armenians charged with the Russian direction so—the Armenians in charge so.

00:29:15:11 - 00:29:23:01
But they—they arrived the communists to make to you like my brother.

00:29:23:01 - 00:29:27:26
If you making piece of bread for yourself, you’re forgetting me.

00:29:28:26 - 00:29:32:03
That’s the Armenian leaders. Communist leaders.

00:29:32:03 - 00:29:42:29
There were just as worst as they are communist, just as worst then the Russians so that was the situation.

00:29:43:25 - 00:29:58:13
That was, anybody who went keeping the life and forgetting the other people, it’s completely—well, that was the communist ideology.

00:29:58:14 - 00:30:00:26
That’s the mind of the people, so.

00:30:01:16 - 00:30:10:17
Anybody who are very aggressive, you can be member of the Communist Party and the village, and they can lead the collective farm and other things.

00:30:11:08 - 00:30:24:22
and taking most of the things to him, to his house and let other poor people dying in the streets—that’s it.

00:30:24:25 - 00:30:27:00
When the Armenians—I’ll make it quick.

00:30:27:00 - 00:30:33:22
But the Armenians under the Armenian Republic, 1918, 1920, there was an Armenian Republic.
-Yes

00:30:34:07 - 00:30:43:09
That time, Armenian communists were kicked out of the Armenian Republic, and they censored—they went to Moscow—they went to—you know—?

00:30:43:11 - 00:30:47:12
Yes.
When the Russians took over Armenia, 1921.

00:30:47:12 - 00:30:48:11
Yeah.

00:30:48:11 - 00:30:55:25
—Those Armenians came back with the Russians, and they became the leaders. Maybe they were wanting to get—maybe they want to get revenge.

00:30:55:25 - 00:30:58:09
Yeah, I thought so. Yeah.

00:30:58:18 - 00:31:03:01
You know? And they continued that legacy of—

00:31:04:14 - 00:31:14:29
It wasn’t much of a Russian leader in villages. That’s the Armenians themselves who was leading so—I guess.

00:31:14:29 - 00:31:21:15
But the direction of the Communist Party, so, direction of Russia so, that’s it.

00:31:23:20 - 00:31:30:01
So some of them really believed in what they were doing, but others knew they had to obey.

00:31:30:05 - 00:31:34:24
Yeah, that’s it. That’s the thing. That’s right.

00:31:34:24 - 00:31:41:00
And how was the situation in the village or just people—were they scared to talk in front of others?

00:31:41:17 - 00:31:45:24
Oh, definitely nothing—nobody criticizing or anything.

00:31:45:24 - 00:31:54:19
You said something against the communists in the village and following day, they imprison you and take you away so, that’s it.

00:31:54:24 - 00:31:56:23
So, you never could trust your neighbor?

00:31:58:19 - 00:32:06:04
Well you really you don’t know. You’re scared to tell anything to—against the communism to anybody.

00:32:06:14 - 00:32:09:02
Say what they’re doing, stuff like that.

00:32:09:19 - 00:32:16:16
You forget you don’t even speak in your house to each other sort of thing, about them.

00:32:17:14 - 00:32:32:11
So, anybody who said against Stalin or anything to Lenin or to Stalin, they’d say if somebody heard that, they would immediately take you away so—that’s it.

00:32:33:27 - 00:32:36:10
That was terrible, terrible.

00:32:41:19 - 00:32:52:01
So, they saw this sickening thing—but at least I landed here.

00:32:53:02 - 00:33:00:09
Alright so—when you left the village, and they took you to the army— you went to officer school?

00:33:00:18 - 00:33:03:03
Yeah. Yeah, they sent me officer school, so.

00:33:03:03 - 00:33:05:26
Where was the officer school?
—Belarussia.

00:33:06:14 - 00:33:22:03
So, I graduate the officer school, and then the first time I was first lieutenant graduate

00:33:22:16 - 00:33:37:08
and then immediately when the German come, and they took us in immediately against German in Poland border in Belarussia, so.

00:33:37:08 - 00:33:46:19
(Interviewer) What year was this?
—That was in 1941—40—39,

00:33:46:19 - 00:33:59:24
I was in Army and 40—41 it started German invasion so—and the war started so we started fighting—

00:33:59:24 - 00:34:02:05
You remember your company?
—Eachother

00:34:02:05 - 00:34:08:24
—Huh?
—You remember your company? Like, the number of your company? Remember?

00:34:09:24 - 00:34:18:06
I have the company so—lot of Uzbeks and Tajiks— Uzbekistan, Tajikistan.

00:34:18:06 - 00:34:26:18
They couldn’t speak one word Russian, so study difficulties, have translators, stuff like that, so.

00:34:26:18 - 00:34:36:04
And then when German planes coming down there and they get up and—ah-ah-ah—in a state, hanging down.

00:34:36:04 - 00:34:42:03
We teach them, we say, don’t do that, so when the plane is coming, you lay down.

00:34:42:20 - 00:34:45:00
You couldn’t—that’s the way it is

00:34:45:00 - 00:34:54:14
and they killing thousands, thousands people so, and killing one after another, one after the other so that’s it, so—

00:34:54:14 - 00:34:58:14
Germans attack Russia, you were on the line—?

00:35:00:27 - 00:35:02:29
Yeah.
—Then what happened?

00:35:03:12 - 00:35:20:03
Well then—then finally that’s the—they—they had to go through a river—I mean my companies—and then I promoted as a captain—Russian army,

00:35:20:18 - 00:35:30:09
and then we move to the lake that we have to back up to go in our land.

00:35:31:03 - 00:35:41:25
So and then we had to go inside Russia, and the German already was the other side, and they took us.

00:35:41:25 - 00:35:43:27
How many men were in your company?

00:35:46:03 - 00:35:50:18
Well, the company? The company, 750, so.

00:35:53:06 - 00:35:59:16
So, they captured—?
—Well, they captured a lot of—was killed, mostly killed,

00:35:59:16 - 00:36:08:21
so those of us—and then, the German was down there then they captured—they captured me too, that’s it.

00:36:09:20 - 00:36:11:19
Where did they take you?

00:36:11:21 - 00:36:33:18
Then, they took us immediately, to Poland and the Polish Stalags and then slowly moving the groups, they putting us all together, so.

00:36:33:26 - 00:36:43:16
47 days I didn’t have any food to eat.
Just praying to God, so nothing of water even.

00:36:43:17 - 00:36:51:09
And you get up, people all—snow, and freezing, on the camp.

00:36:51:09 - 00:36:54:16
You see, everybody is dead, so.

00:36:55:19 - 00:37:06:08
And then, they started giving piece of turnip bread.
1 pound for 37 prisoners.

00:37:07:07 - 00:37:13:07
And, when they cutting out, we sitting and looking on it

00:37:13:07 - 00:37:23:18
If your little piece fall down, in ground, I go down, jump up to take it. Everybody jumping on top of me.

00:37:23:23 - 00:37:29:18
By that time, everybody get lifted up, half of them dead, so.

00:37:36:27 - 00:37:49:05
So then finally, they moving prisoner taking one place to other place so, and that type of life—I have life.

00:37:49:11 - 00:37:58:14
Now coming in the story about situation—I didn’t die and so—I got malaria sicknesses and everything

00:37:58:14 - 00:38:02:23
but I always prayed to God I keep it living so—I guess I didn’t die, so then—
—Typhus?

00:38:02:23 - 00:38:06:03
but I always prayed to God I keep it living so—I guess I didn’t die, so then—
—Typhus?

00:38:06:11 - 00:38:08:00
—Huh?
—You had Typhus?

00:38:08:00 - 00:38:09:27
Typhus, yeah typhus.

00:38:10:03 - 00:38:12:09
Yeah, typhus.

00:38:12:16 - 00:38:16:03
So, and—
—How many pounds were you?
—and finally—

00:38:16:03 - 00:38:23:06
Oh, I don’t have any pound shaking up.
I was a toothpick so that sort of thing, that’s it.

00:38:24:29 - 00:38:31:15
And then, finally it was the situation is a passing

00:38:32:09 - 00:38:43:08
And we heard that they had ration. They keeping all prisoners together so of course, finally we heard,

00:38:43:13 - 00:38:56:16
that General Dro was coming the situation telling the German that you have to free Armenian people

00:38:57:15 - 00:39:08:06
and put one camp and then give them work to work for you, work your factories and places, so.

00:39:08:22 - 00:39:18:26
and finally they separated Armenians, and put in one camp, and that time they started giving the food to eat.

00:39:19:03 - 00:39:26:24
Then, they sent us different places in Germany to work factory.

00:39:28:03 - 00:39:44:28
And then finally—and they moved me and my company—the groups who were Armenians, to the French border to build tank places.

00:39:45:22 - 00:39:59:09
And that’s the time that Anglo-American had invasion to come and that time the Anglo-American free us completely.

00:39:59:14 - 00:40:01:18
Everybody was free.

00:40:01:18 - 00:40:04:17
So, everybody wanted to run away.

00:40:04:17 - 00:40:13:20
But I was thinking about to find an Armenian place or Armenian person to live,
and I did.

00:40:14:02 - 00:40:22:25
In France, I got Kegham Sarayan. And I went, took it up, and I went to his house.

00:40:23:16 - 00:40:30:27
I live his house, so, but it was a very, very bad situation.

00:40:30:27 - 00:40:37:25
Terrible, so I tried possibility is I will move
from here, so.

00:40:38:04 - 00:40:44:20
Finally, with the trains, I landed Brussels, Belgium.

00:40:45:28 - 00:40:56:22
In Brussels, Belgium, I walked to a telephone booth and looked at the names of Armenian.

00:40:57:05 - 00:41:03:05
I find the names Garabedian, Khachik Garabedian. I call up.

00:41:04:00 - 00:41:08:26
He spoke to me, he said, “Son, you speak Russian Armenian.”

00:41:09:20 - 00:41:11:26
He said, “Where are you?”

00:41:11:28 - 00:41:15:22
I said I am such and such place so he said, “You stay there.”

00:41:16:08 - 00:41:21:28
I said “here,” putting this number, so he said, “you stay there,”

00:41:22:09 - 00:41:29:14
and he says, “the first time I see an Armenian having a car,” automobile.

00:41:29:20 - 00:41:31:21
He come and took his house.

00:41:32:12 - 00:41:35:05
He have two daughters, and the wife.

00:41:36:08 - 00:41:43:11
I, he took—he was completely—big Oriental rug merchant.

00:41:44:09 - 00:41:55:04
He own the places, stores and places, took my house.
He said, “Son, anything you want.”

00:41:55:26 - 00:42:02:02
After keeping me—about two, three weeks I was his house.

00:42:02:04 - 00:42:09:14
He said, “from now on, you are my son.
You ask anything you want.” so.

00:42:10:11 - 00:42:15:02

I said, “Really? I’d like to be a doctor.”

00:42:16:01 - 00:42:23:07
Because in Germany, the doctors lived through prison camps and anywhere.

00:42:23:20 - 00:42:29:14
They’re using them to have the soldiers side keeping their life, giving them food and everything

00:42:29:15 - 00:42:36:09
so it come to my mind that maybe again the war so that way if I am doctor, I will be safe.

00:42:37:06 - 00:42:42:08
So. But I couldn’t speak the language so—French—how could I go?

00:42:43:11 - 00:42:46:04
I said, I will be doctor or dentist, so.

00:42:47:25 - 00:42:56:12
Finally, I said, “Well, I can’t do anything like this right now. I have to study the French more so.”

00:42:57:06 - 00:43:08:19
And, I worked for him so, in the carpet department, stuff like that, so.

00:43:08:28 - 00:43:20:26
And, but I never, never, scared death to walk in the street because our situation was difficult.

00:43:20:26 - 00:43:24:05
We signed paper to the Soviet government.

00:43:24:16 - 00:43:34:17
But in case of the war, if I was surrounded by the enemy, I have to shoot until last bullet.

00:43:35:02 - 00:43:40:09
If I couldn’t get out, I have to shoot myself, never give alive.

00:43:41:10 - 00:43:46:10
That was what we did. Signed for the Soviet Union, so.

00:43:46:22 - 00:43:54:27
And I couldn’t go. We’re scared death from his house,
I couldn’t get up from the house to walk in the streets,
stuff like that.

00:43:55:23 - 00:44:01:25
And somehow they, someday, they have few other people, different people’s house.

00:44:02:10 - 00:44:12:25
Somebody, some Armenian communist or something like that tailored the situation, then they come and took them to Armenian homes,

00:44:13:25 - 00:44:16:28
and send back Russia to killed them, so.

00:44:17:21 - 00:44:29:10
Finally, Mr. Garabedian, things like that happen, difficulties. He did gotted a machine gun for me.

00:44:29:24 - 00:44:37:15
I was in third floor so I have it just in case, so something like that had happened, so.

00:44:38:02 - 00:44:44:27
Then finally when it is difficult to stay like that, he took one of the faraway villages.

00:44:45:18 - 00:44:55:03
He had government workers, which was customer down there. I stayed few months down there.

00:44:55:24 - 00:45:12:16
And finally when everything loaded down, slowed down and Belgium take very strong position against the communist situation so then he brought me in home, so.

00:45:12:16 - 00:45:16:21
What was the—the hotel when you were—?

00:45:16:21 - 00:45:26:27
I said, “papa Garabedian”. I said, “this is not life.”

00:45:28:13 - 00:45:35:05
I scared every minute so—and all these difficulties, you give me everything, so

00:45:35:05 - 00:45:46:10
I said, I like to move out from Europe to go America
or South America some place. Faraway place, so.

00:45:48:23 - 00:46:02:19
Well, he said, it’s okay, if that’s the situation so—that’s it, if you want it, I want you to be very free to not scare or something like that son.

00:46:03:08 - 00:46:15:26
I, he had a sister living in Beirut and they gotted a passport somehow or something like that.

00:46:16:13 - 00:46:22:06
And then I got a visa to go Brazil, South America.

00:46:23:23 - 00:46:32:04
But I said I will go through because I know the Hairenik,
the newspaper he has.

00:46:32:20 - 00:46:41:29
So, I said before that, I go through America.
So, I got a visa to go America, I come down here.

00:46:42:18 - 00:46:47:25
So immediately they took me Hairenik so I met Armenian Relief Society.

00:46:48:29 - 00:46:55:08
I don’t know if you remember Mrs. Mekhitarian, the head of the Armenian Relief Society.

00:46:55:08 - 00:46:57:14
Maybe you are small so.

00:46:57:14 - 00:47:08:03
And, I took the Hairenik, I met Tarpinian, and they took me put the room in Hotel Statler.

00:47:10:00 - 00:47:17:20
And few days I lived there.
And finally, they find me place in Watertown, Porter Street.

00:47:18:24 - 00:47:23:25
Mr. and Mrs. Deroian’s house.
They didn’t have any child.

00:47:24:16 - 00:47:26:22
—Deroian?
—Deroian.

00:47:27:06 - 00:47:35:06
I went they house so, Mr. and Mrs. Deroian, and then they took me as—like the son, so.

00:47:37:06 - 00:47:48:04
I stayed Watertown—that was 1940—end of 46, 47.

00:47:48:18 - 00:47:58:11
I stayed the house end of 47 so—so then, slowly I didn’t get out from the house. They didn’t tell anybody anything, so.

00:47:58:27 - 00:48:09:25
Finally—I, everybody didn’t know I said—they tooked me, the Armenian Choir Association. The choir group.

00:48:10:02 - 00:48:14:12
I don’t know if you know this: Siranush Der Manuelian group.

00:48:15:00 - 00:48:23:19
So I went down there. So, and, I saw my wife singing down there, Alice, so.

00:48:24:10 - 00:48:39:09
So, and then, and afterwards I come to tell Mrs. Mekhitarian, the head of the Armenian Relief Society. I said, I met the girl, so.

00:48:40:01 - 00:48:47:12
I said, I met her, I see her down in the choir.

00:48:47:26 - 00:48:59:24
And then I saw her, I went international institute to learn in Beacon street in Boston, to learn English, so.

00:49:00:04 - 00:49:09:19
and I saw a girl, the same girl down there, teaching, helping some other foreigner, so.

00:49:10:10 - 00:49:11:27
The same girl.

00:49:12:05 - 00:49:17:26
I said I met her so—her name is Alice Sarafian, so.

00:49:18:25 - 00:49:24:17
So he said you met the most beautiful family and most beautiful girl.

00:49:25:08 - 00:49:36:02
So, he said they are—belong to us, they belong to our group, so. And they’re wonderful people, so.

00:49:36:08 - 00:49:49:07
and said, her mother, it’s very good education, and so, that way slowly I met Alice.

00:49:49:29 - 00:50:00:16
and then I come here, the houses next—not this house beside me, next one. It was the house.

00:50:01:10 - 00:50:14:01
And then I come down there and met few times still living and decided to engaged and get married.

00:50:15:02 - 00:50:22:08
And 1948, January 11, we married.

00:50:22:28 - 00:50:28:18
It’s since 59 years old— so 59 years ago.

00:50:29:16 - 00:50:39:09
Now tomorrow, next year it will be our 60 anniversary. So 60 years married, so.

00:50:40:13 - 00:50:55:06
So then, I live the family—with them two years afterwards when my wife going to work in Boston.

00:50:56:02 - 00:51:12:05
and branch of business—branch of public library—I researched—she met the person from this house who used to go work, so, because it was neighbors, so.

00:51:12:10 - 00:51:21:28
Finally, someday, sometime after two years, I living there, the woman tell, she said, the woman who owned the house said

00:51:21:28 - 00:51:34:01
“it’s my relative, she died, so now the house, we will put for sale.” So my wife said, “What, we’d like to have it.”

00:51:34:14 - 00:51:46:22
“You like to have it” she said, “You can’t—It’s a big house and it’s very expensive, you can’t have with no children yet” so.

00:51:47:09 - 00:51:56:27
So, one child. we said, “Well we will have children so—we have one now and we will have more so—”

00:51:57:16 - 00:52:03:20
So we got our real-estate person that she will dealing with it.

00:52:04:05 - 00:52:12:25
She said “12,000.” I said, “No, we can’t afford the 12,000. Where we can get it?” so

00:52:14:03 - 00:52:23:02
Of course, that time I was working, the rug, putting wall to wall carpeting so—I working—Paine furniture company, so.

00:52:24:17 - 00:52:40:03
And so I—Then finally we decide $11,500, and we buy the house and move in 1952, down here.

00:52:40:17 - 00:52:43:20
That’s it. 11,500.

00:52:43:27 - 00:52:51:08
Now I pay that one tax for city of Newton. Yearly tax. So.

00:52:51:08 - 00:52:56:02
Wow.
—So, that’s it.

00:52:58:01 - 00:53:03:05
And I—we had started having our children

00:53:03:21 - 00:53:18:01
and my wife, when started, I said, “Honey, no more work outside—now, your work—It’s the house to bring up the children—”

00:53:18:27 - 00:53:25:07
“—and I work and supply everything we can have.”

00:53:27:01 - 00:53:31:11
That’s what I did, 45 years. Kicking the carpeting.

00:53:31:27 - 00:53:46:19
Now, cannot work, so —so, in 1983, my hip gone, so I had operation.

00:53:47:07 - 00:54:01:21
And then Dan was just graduating from the school—college so—and he—he come, and started to—to helped, before when he was student.

00:54:02:08 - 00:54:13:02
Finally, afterwards, said “Dad—I can work” so—he learned so—the things.

00:54:13:09 - 00:54:26:14
I said honey, it’s very hard work. He got master’s degree in History, so—but since he know the business to work so, I cannot work. He said, “I will take over” so.

00:54:27:22 - 00:54:34:11
But he never, he said, I will never lay the carpet so—I do
the cleaning so—

00:54:34:29 - 00:54:40:05
which I went cleaning in the school in New York, I learned cleaning so—

00:54:40:07 - 00:54:55:11
I went to school because some carpets cleaning school in New York so, myself. And he was learning already that—that big machine I had, ordering and stuff like that, so—so.

00:54:56:08 - 00:55:07:28
that’s it unfortunately so—that’s—He started helping, he run the business so—and stay this way, so that’s it.

00:55:09:01 - 00:55:16:25
And this is the way we have my beautiful children grew up, so.

00:55:17:13 - 00:55:33:24
And then, afterwards, my oldest daughter was Susan—was want to go school in France, Sorbonne.

00:55:34:16 - 00:55:55:14
And I want her to study French, so she went down there and Sorbonne after one year, meet a French boy in the college, and she tells that we like each other, so.

00:55:56:08 - 00:56:01:27
I didn’t want much about so—it was a French boy, so.

00:56:02:04 - 00:56:08:17
And finally they come here, I met the boy, and then they married.

00:56:08:23 - 00:56:19:10
After they married, one year, two year later on, she said “Dad we’d like to come to France—to America. ”

00:56:19:27 - 00:56:22:26
So they come here in the house and live in third floor.

00:56:24:16 - 00:56:26:22
They had one child.

00:56:27:09 - 00:56:37:22
And then, Susan went back to the Boston College and got a doctoral degree in French languages.

00:56:38:20 - 00:56:59:25
And she now, of course, teaching one day French in Harvard, so. And she is now the department head of Newton Free Library so—she’s working here so—library.

00:57:00:26 - 00:57:04:00
So, in bilingual situation.

00:57:07:21 - 00:57:19:09
And then afterwards, of course—Danny—then I have my Sonya, my Danny, my Diane.

00:57:19:23 - 00:57:36:02
Danny married, have two children: a boy and girl. Unfortunately separated, and now we have remarried and have beautiful wife and very happy life.

00:57:36:20 - 00:57:56:25
And my Sonya was married, had two sons. She was separated, so—and—and my Diane, not married, and they all beautiful children, each one.

00:57:56:29 - 00:58:15:12
Sonya have two sons—Danny’s son is the college, and Sonya’s one son is in the college and the other son, is he going—Newton South High School.

00:58:15:12 - 00:58:21:05
They move from Framingham to here to take care us—
to help us.

00:58:22:29 - 00:58:30:25
I am—with my wife unfortunately, didn’t feel well.

00:58:32:04 - 00:58:47:19
Got Parkinsons’s sicknesses so—unfortunately, and myself—a real difficulty to move ourselves, so we have all these people to help us.

00:58:48:26 - 00:58:58:05
And now my childrens lucky every one of them surrounded us, they all around us.

00:58:58:14 - 00:59:01:13
Thank God, and helpful, so.

00:59:02:14 - 00:59:16:04
Now this is the life which I haved, and I very happy and continue to live with my children with God’s help.

00:59:17:11 - 00:59:32:16
We will live and think about that the human beings go through lot of difficulties in their life

00:59:33:15 - 00:59:37:23
but they will be happy in the future

00:59:38:01 - 00:59:59:05
and everything they got and they old age, they have to carry on until, God help me, to live and continue to live—as much as the God want him to live.

00:59:59:05 - 01:00:02:04
That’s it, thank you.

01:00:02:12 - 01:00:11:15
You know something? The tape—you ended—The tape is going to stop in a few seconds. You did it, one hour.
—Oh, my God.

01:00:11:15 - 01:00:16:17
What are the chances of that?
—Yeah?
—It’s, what, one hour and 20 seconds.

01:00:16:17 - 01:00:19:08
My God. So that’s it.

01:00:19:08 - 01:00:24:08
(Interviewer) I have a question, but I mean, I don’t want to—should I?
(Another person) Yeah, yeah.

01:00:24:08 - 01:00:28:24
(Interviewer) I don’t know how—how we could have any more—do any more.
(Another person) I wonder if—

01:00:28:24 - 01:00:42:18
Well, I did it so that’s—I tell everything so that’s it, so.
That’s what counts. That’s it. That’s what—I look my son, that’s my happiness.

01:00:42:18 - 01:00:46:21
I look my daughter, that’s my happiness, my grandson, my happiness.

01:00:46:21 - 01:00:50:25
And my friend you are my happiness. My son’s friend—

01:00:50:25 - 01:00:53:09
—Thank you.
—That’s—that’s the way it is.
—I mean I’m happy to be—

01:00:53:09 - 01:01:05:23
Then of course I’ve been told that my devotion when I come America, I started devoting all my life to the American Armenians.

01:01:06:18 - 01:01:19:21
I was—I was 18 years in—leader of the Saint Stepanos church, in—in down Watertown.

01:01:22:08 - 01:01:24:24
Can you talk about your dance group?
—Yeah?

01:01:24:24 - 01:01:31:23
Here in America. How did you find your dance group?
—Yeah.
It was special, Can you tell us about that?

01:01:32:11 - 01:01:35:16
Well that I organized it, yeah—

01:01:36:29 - 01:01:38:13
What year?

01:01:41:22 - 01:01:56:15
—Well, 1948—49? 49. 49—50—51.
—So why don’t you talk about it, the dance group?

01:01:56:23 - 01:02:00:15
Yeah, well in the church and everything.
—Go ahead.

01:02:00:15 - 01:02:03:13
—Okay started?
—Yes.

01:02:04:18 - 01:02:11:23
Well then—then afterwards I landed here and met everybody—I married.

01:02:11:23 - 01:02:24:13
I thought, if any Armenian have a little ability himself to give to his nation, to his people.

01:02:24:19 - 01:02:35:08
I thought I know little bit about the dancing and loving my people and education.

01:02:35:20 - 01:02:41:10
I did organized the Armenian folk dance group of Boston.

01:02:42:07 - 01:02:50:01
I got young boys and girls together, started teaching Armenian dances.

01:02:51:11 - 01:03:09:22
I continued the dance group one every single organization. The church groups, not only Armenian, American. All states—and the last performance 18 years.

01:03:09:22 - 01:03:19:18
And last performance I did it, 1964, they invited my dance group to perform in Worlds Fair, New York.

01:03:20:19 - 01:03:22:17
I perform there.

01:03:22:17 - 01:03:40:03
Afterwards, I come from down there with all the situation.
I said with my work, I said I would not—cannot continue anymore, so.

01:03:40:20 - 01:03:45:09
And thats—that’s—anymore.

01:03:45:09 - 01:03:57:07
But 18 years, I perform it, and give it the best for my Armenian children who born here,

01:03:57:07 - 01:04:00:19
and it was dance group and to the Armenian people.

01:04:01:11 - 01:04:11:08
Then afterwards I completely devoted to the Armenian Revolution Federation down here, this country

01:04:11:08 - 01:04:21:27
and—and been with them working very hard.
So, and it was treasure so many years so.

01:04:22:24 - 01:04:32:07
And then afterwards completely we have to buy the church in—in the Watertown.

01:04:32:19 - 01:04:52:06
I was devoted completely and elected as one of the chairmen to collect money from the peoples going door to door, get the money and build Saint Stephens church.

01:04:52:28 - 01:05:06:12
Plus, they asking me the same way to be a—complete—devoted to build Armenian community center.

01:05:06:24 - 01:05:09:06
I was working very, very hard.

01:05:09:14 - 01:05:28:08
I was one of the seven people honored on the Armenian community center.

01:05:28:08 - 01:05:32:06
They honored me for my devotion

01:05:33:18 - 01:05:46:13
Then after I involved with the church, some—builded the church, and started election and started working more and more.

01:05:46:13 - 01:05:50:21
And all people helping the people to come to church

01:05:50:21 - 01:06:03:10
and to help every way as possible to build the Armenian languages, Armenian churches and the school beside to the Armenian Church.

01:06:03:25 - 01:06:08:07
I sended all my children to the schools, to study.

01:06:08:07 - 01:06:16:09
Many other friends too, their children went to Armenian school Saint Stephen church to study, so.

01:06:17:06 - 01:06:28:16
Finally I was elected Chairman’s service of the things.

01:06:29:01 - 01:06:44:11
I was vice chairman in the church and I was elected many, many time as a delegate to represent Armenian Saint Stephen’s church in national ways, so.

01:06:44:24 - 01:06:48:03
And the meetings so—the Armenian Prelacy.

01:06:48:16 - 01:07:03:08
And the last time they elected me to a delegate to go Beirut for election to Karekin or so.

01:07:04:06 - 01:07:22:21
So which I did it so—that was all my devotion in the church continued almost 19-20 years so—devoted so with the community.

01:07:23:24 - 01:07:39:20
I still, in my age in this time, I still love my church, my people and any—everything I had, I give it to my church, my people.

01:07:40:15 - 01:07:55:01
One thing I forgotted before telling that—ah—when I come America, I come with Ile de France boat. Ile de France.

01:07:55:18 - 01:08:07:21
And that down there was the American actress, Simone Simone. I think. Simone Simone was that girl’s name?

01:08:08:15 - 01:08:16:05
— French actor?
—Nina Simone? Nina Simone, I think.
—Yeah, it was—yeah, it was a big actress.

01:08:16:05 - 01:08:21:17
Something like that, I forgot it. I think Simone something, so.

01:08:22:11 - 01:08:46:23
Then—then afterwards because I find out that—later on by other people that my people got the news from Russian government that I was killed in action.

01:08:48:06 - 01:09:04:24
So, therefore, many many years pass since that time our people my father, mother, my sisters did know that I was not existing anymore.

01:09:05:16 - 01:09:20:16
One of my friends, after three years when the communists gone away so and built the independent Armenia, he went down there

01:09:21:11 - 01:09:33:10
who was army with me with me to see his people—in the same district that I live from left shore of the Lake Sevan.

01:09:33:10 - 01:09:35:18
And then—

01:09:39:02 - 01:09:44:25
And then, he went my house and to see my people.

01:09:44:25 - 01:09:50:20
My father died when he heard that I was killed in action, my mother still was living.

01:09:51:07 - 01:09:56:06
He told them that I am living and I am in America, so.

01:09:57:04 - 01:10:09:23
I couldn’t let them to know about that I living. I scared from the communist situation so that’s like I told before, so—that I should killed ourselves, never give up life, so.

01:10:10:02 - 01:10:14:02
that I should killed ourselves, never give up life, so.

01:10:15:02 - 01:10:25:02
So, and finally, they know that—my mother know that
I am living still,

01:10:25:15 - 01:10:38:15
and I have the family, wonderful family so—and we got in touch each other from the letters or sometime a telephone conversation.

01:10:39:10 - 01:11:04:06
Finally, I—1992, I took my wife Alice, and we went to the Armenia to see in my home, my cousins, my relatives and friends so—my sisters.

01:11:05:04 - 01:11:18:08
And then, I—my mother was—was alive— that time.

01:11:19:21 - 01:11:27:24
Well, no, she wasn’t alive, no. The mother was dead too, which I couldn’t have gone in the funeral. so.

01:11:27:24 - 01:11:35:00
And—but that time, I saw my relatives, my sisters, and my house, so.

01:11:35:04 - 01:11:48:16
And after that, we started connecting each other, seeing each other so with the telephone and read the letters, so.

01:11:48:16 - 01:11:51:00
—How long did you stay? In Armenia?

01:11:52:06 - 01:11:57:04
It was couple weeks, I think.

01:11:57:21 - 01:12:00:25
About couple weeks? Two—two.
—Seven weeks.

01:12:01:01 - 01:12:03:10
—Yeah?
—Seven weeks.
—Seven weeks?

01:12:03:10 - 01:12:05:01
—Yeah
—It was?
—Yes.

01:12:05:01 - 01:12:13:04
Yeah. Well, we stay down there it was seven weeks, so, was together.
—What was your reception at the airport when you arrived?

01:12:14:06 - 01:12:26:26
When I arrived in the airport, that was many, many people down there waiting for me to get up from the plane.

01:12:27:07 - 01:12:40:25
And Yerevan, in Etchmiadzin, Armenia so—so then afterwards they took me to—took me to Yerevan.

01:12:41:09 - 01:12:47:24
I stayed in one of their relatives’ house in Yerevan, so.

01:12:47:24 - 01:12:58:17
And finally, the following days they arranged to take me to my village, Lake Sevan, so.

01:12:59:25 - 01:13:15:09
When I went down there they organized, about five, six miles before reaching to my village. Thousands—thousands children and people—organized.

01:13:15:14 - 01:13:23:05
They close the school and to welcome me to my village, to my people, so.

01:13:25:00 - 01:13:32:21
And they called me to give speeches and loving me, kissing, and hugging, so.

01:13:33:05 - 01:13:45:28
Finally I ask them, before—I said “please, before I go my home, take me the cemetery where my father and mother’s living.”

01:13:46:15 - 01:13:55:18
They took me the cemetery and I kneel down and kiss the—

01:13:57:13 - 01:14:03:22
—Stones?
The—kiss the stones.

01:14:03:23 - 01:14:13:27
And have there, so my father, mother, and all my dead brother and sisters’ graves

01:14:14:11 - 01:14:16:21
And then come home, so.

01:14:16:25 - 01:14:30:08
And they have given me good time. Everybody surrounded—everybody bringing food and talking and having a good time.

01:14:31:04 - 01:14:35:05
Stay down there about few weeks.

01:14:35:17 - 01:14:59:10
Finally, I get up with a cry and pang and look my village and the places and my past with broken heart. And I come back to—with my wife, which they loved very, very much, so.

01:14:59:10 - 01:15:05:03
And then we come back to our home in America.

01:15:06:10 - 01:15:11:25
This is the history which I haved.

01:15:13:04 - 01:15:18:16
Many other things, but this is so much which I went through in my life, so.

01:15:19:02 - 01:15:25:25
and I am very happy now with even the condition that my wife and I have—

01:15:25:25 - 01:15:38:28
I have my beautiful children, grandchildrens, who surrounding me and keeping us very, very happy, thank God.

01:15:40:18 - 01:15:44:17
—And—to help—

01:15:45:12 - 01:15:56:16
Thank God so, keep us going, loving our children, loving our grandchildrens.

01:15:57:16 - 01:16:17:22
And meantime, if you give us good life, living life, helping me and my wife every day. Every day I kiss God, Christ, your eyes, your hand and your faith.

01:16:18:07 - 01:16:22:14
Anoon Hor, Yev Vortvo, Yev Hokvooyn Srpo. Thank you.
That was good.

01:16:24:01 - 01:16:28:16
—Very nice. Very nice, thank you.