Dear Alumni,

We hope you are doing well and enjoying the winter holidays in the warm atmosphere of your families and friends. We wish you and your close ones a Happy New Year and a Merry Christmas! Let 2013 be a year of success, new discoveries, good health and happiness for you!

In this newsletter we share with you highlights of our 2012 achievements and successes. This was a year of unprecedented growth for Depi Hayk. We hit the record of 128 volunteers from 15 different counties, hosting our first volunteers from Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia and Spain. If comparing to last year, this represents 43% growth rate! We also registered quite a jump in alumni repats. This year 19 of you moved back to Armenia for long term studies and work. Thank you for all your updates, submissions and stories. We are always proud and excited about every success, project andinitiative you share with us and the whole Birthright Armenia community. And of course, keep on spreading the word about Birthright Armenia among your friends! It is also because of you that we are witnessing this impressive growth.

This year we also started new partnerships, new projects and new policies! Among our new partner organizations are Tumo Center of Creative Technologies and the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia, which have been added to the list of our sponsored organizations.

Many of you remember our previous office on 62 Hanrapetutyan. We’re almost done turning it back into an apartment to run Pathway to Armenia. As you read this, we’re installing the internet and new keyless entry system. Our application package will be ready soon, which you can read more about in this newsletter. And in order to help with job searches in Ar-menia, we are working on a collaborative effort that maximizes opportunities for all of you.

And finally, stipends and our new fellowship policy await our new 2013 participants, all meant to encourage long-term volunteering.

We hope you enjoy reading this newsletter and we are looking forward to getting more sub-missions from you in the coming year!

From the BR/Depi Hayk Team Շնորհավոր Նոր Տարի և Սուրբ Ծնունդ

What’s Inside?

• Year-end Message• Pathway to Armenia• The Alumni GIVE BACK Fund• 2012 Statistically!• 2012 Photographically!• Alumni Filmmakers• Yerevan alumni gathering• Repat Armenia• The Quiz winner and the new Quiz

Depi Hayk Alumni Newsletter Winter Edition 2012-2013

After the enthusiastic work of our current participants, who helped paint and repair our old of-fice and transform it into a temporary lodging for the future repats, we are near ready to officially launch the “Pathway to Armenia” program. The apartment is ready to host our first three alumni who are committing to making a move to Armenia in search of employment and for long-term stays. If you don’t know where to start, this is the right place. The Path-way to Armenia program will provide you with ac-commodation for up to three months, and help you in the employment search process. We will send you the link to the application package in January.

Hurry up to be the first ones settling in!

COUNTRIES REPRESENTED IN 2012

This year we hit the record of 128 volunteers from 15 different counties, hosting our first volunteers from Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia and Spain. Compared to the previous year, we had a 43 % growth!

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Pathway to Armenia: Ready to Host our First Three REPATS

2012 YEAR IN PHOTOS

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On November 11, after a year of writing, fundraising, producing, filming and editing, our alum Oksana Mirzoyan (AVC ‘11) finally presented to the public her new short film 140 Drams in Yerevan. Over 300 people attended the screening which was followed by a short Q&A and celebration with Karas wine, which sponsored the event. Among the producers of the film are Anahid Yahjian (AVC ‘11) and Emily Mkrtichian (Bars Media ‘11). The film has already won two awards: HONORABLE MENTION AWARD at 7th Annual Pomegranate Film Festival in Toronto, and OFFICIAL SELECTION at the 15th Annual ARPA Film Festival in Los Angeles. Oksana was also awarded a $1500 Birthright Armenia Next Step Grant to help with the film’s PR and distribution. We wish further success to the film and its producers!

“I decided to center 140 Drams around a five-year-old because of the boys and girls of Myasnikyan—a small town in western Armenia. I had been teaching a photography workshop there for a few weeks when I started thinking about putting together a screenplay for a short film. Despite having lived in Armenia for several months prior to starting the workshop, I didn’t become as aware of some of the heaviest issues acing Armenians today as I did after listening to what the children had to say during our daily discussions. I learned that beyond seminal events like the Armenian genocide and Nagorno Karabagh war, Armenians are dealing with a very basic struggle right here and now. They are exhausted. The transition out of communism has left them to fight for what little they have left to hold on to. 30% live under the international poverty line, and it’s often every man for himself. Poverty seeps its way into everyday life and steadily poisons it. There is no moment of relief, no peace of mind. That the children were the ones opening my eyes to this was disarming, to say the least,” says Oksana.

SYNOPSYS: 140 Drams tells the story of a young boy who must go to the store by himself for the first time. Things get complicat-ed when the 140 Drams his mother gave him for milk are not enough, and he has to make a difficult choice. The experience of this young boy becomes a kaleidoscope through which the landscape of a modern Armenia emerges. Through bits and pieces, fragments of conversation and glimpses of the insides of a single bedroom apartment, this film tries to put together a picture of this country, right now. (http://www.140drams.com)

ALUMNI FILMMAKERS

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LAUNCHING THE YEREVAN ALUMNI/REPAT CHAPTER!

“With 46 alumni living and working in Armenia, I think the time has come to launch a Birthright Armenia Alumni Chapter here in Armenia. The Pathway To Armenia program launching next month represents another opportu-nity for alumni to move to Armenia and connect with our network. Those of us who have moved here and have gone through the transition process felt we could do more, to provide a support system for the new alum-ni coming in. While the Pathway to Armenia program will apply Birthright’s extensive reach and resources to the housing and job search to alum-ni, those who have already repatriated can provide additional professional and personal mentorship. This event was a great chance for everyone to meet, share stories, and exchange ideas. I look forward to being part of this great network, and to the bright future ahead” said Tania Sahakian, event coordinator (AAA ‘05).

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Alumni Repatriation Stats – you can be one too!

Birthright Armenia has recently partnered with Repat Armenia, a community of like-minded people with life experiences that traveled the world and at different points in time converged in Armenia. Repat Armenia provides information, resource and experience support to others that wish to travel a similar path. Check out their website, which is geared to provide answers to your questions, inspiration with a personal touch, and

support on an individual level.

The Quiz winner and the new Quiz

The winner of the last quiz, and a $25 gift certificate is Vrej Haroutounian (ATP ‘10) whose correct answers were:

1. What is the name of the Armenian medieval-era cemetery in Nakhijevan completely annihilated by the Azerbaijani authorities in 2002? (Julfa (Jugha))2. Name the two countries from which Armenia imports natural gas (Russia and Iran)3. In which city and which year did the first opera performance in Armenia take place? (Gyumri, 1912)

Here are the questions for the next quiz:

1. When (month and day) did the ancient Armenians celebrate the New Year and what month and day of the modern calendar does it correspond to? 2. According to the Constitution of Armenia, how many years does a president serve in one term, and how many consecutive terms can a president serve for?3. In which city and which year did Armenia win the World Chess Olympiad for the first time? As always, e-mail all answers to info@birthrightarmenia.am and the winner will earn a $25 gift certificate for www.amazon.com.

Interested In Some Birthright Armenia Paraphernalia?

Interested in a sweatshirt or a cap with the Birthright Armenia logo? Simply visit our shop at cafepress.com and see the available products. This is a good way to showcase

your pride.

birthrightarmenia.org

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