The Paros Foundation underwrites all administrative and overhead costs allowing 100% of all donor contributions to godirectly towards projects and supported organizations.
Donations to The Paros Foundation Projects for Prosperity are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. To sponsor a project through The Paros Foundation, a 501 (c) 3 organization (Tax ID 20-5094630), or learn more about specific projects in need of funding, please contact us using the information below.
Nor Ughi Village is located in Armenia’s Ararat Region and is home to the Vedi Alcohol Company. Almost 2,000 people call Nor Ughi and neighboring Ginevet Village their home. Many in these villages are employed at Vedi Alcohol factory or are engaged in agricultural activities.
170 students attend the village school, including 10 displaced students from Artsakh. The students are from both the neighboring villages of Ginevet and Nor Ughi. Recently, the school gym was renovated, and an outdoor soccer field was constructed through the leadership of Mr. and Mrs. John & June Mangassarian from Rhode Island and they want to continue positively impacting Nor Ughi.
Next of the list of priorities is the reconstruction of a science lab that will serve as the laboratory for the school’s physics, chemistry and biology classes. This project will consist of the renovation of two rooms including a large classroom that will serve as the lab, and a smaller room that will serve as the adjacent storage area. The scope of work will include the complete renovation of the room’s flooring, walls, electrical & lighting, ventilation and plumbing including the installation of fresh water and sewer lines. Once the renovation is completed, the Armenian Government will be providing laboratory furniture and equipment to the school.
Two separate entities have generously agreed to match all donations. The Rafaelian/Caruolo family will be matching all donations to honor Ralph and Lucy Rafaelian, and John and June Mangassarian will also match all contributions. Therefore, for every $1, we move $3 toward our goal!
Currently, the Nor Ughi School does not have sufficient facilities nor equipment for students to study physics, biology or chemistry effectively.
Short Term Impact
In the short term, students at the Nor Ughi School will receive a newly renovated science lab and necessary furniture and equipment to more effectively study.
Long Term Impact
In the long term, students in this community will be better equipped to engage in studies of the higher education fields of physics, chemistry and biology, thus being better prepared for the future.
Sponsors Benefits
All sponsors of this important project will be listed on The Paros Foundation’s website and in all press related to this project. Visits to these communities can be arranged for sponsors visiting Armenia.
Now with school out, our crew has begun the work to renovate the school’s science lab and storage rooms.
July 25, 2025
Thanks to the successful fundraising efforts of John and June Mangassarian and the generosity of their family and friends, this project is being expanded to include the reconstruction of the school’s teacher’s lounge and the principal’s office. In addition, school supplies for the displaced children from Artsakh who now attend the school will be purchased and provided for the upcoming school year. Finally, a critical shortage of books for the school’s library will also be addressed as part of this expanded project with the assistance of the Armenian Educational Foundation.
Narine Atamian and her Fiancé, Tim Schade are asking their family and friends to support the expansion and renovation of a home for a family in a remote village of Armenia. Narine, and the Atamian family have a longtime connection to this village and wish to continue their support to celebrate Narine and Tim’s upcoming wedding.
Garnik H. and his wife have four children. The family of six lives together with Garnik’s mother in the village of Nerkin Karmir Aghbyur.
Currently Garnik’s home needs a new roof, has no indoor plumbing and has a great need for an additional bedroom and kitchen. While the home’s living space has been modestly renovated over the years, the majority of the house needs a complete renovation. Garnik is a hardworking member of the Nerkin Karmir Aghbyur community. He is engaged in agricultural activities to sustain his family including maintaining several pigs and running a small family farm. Garnik and his family would be grateful if we could replace the leaking roof on his home along with completing renovation on the unfinished rooms in his home and adding a bathroom. This would help seal his home from the cold winter weather and rain and allow his children to live in a safer, sanitary and more comfortable environment.
Improving conditions for people to live in communities along the border with Azerbaijan is important. Many of these residents work as border guards, protecting our borders. Helping villagers with home improvements is vital to help create a vibrant border community. Garnik’s family is large and the two unfinished rooms will be completed allowing for an additional bedroom and proper kitchen. In addition, a bathroom addition will be added to the home to allow for proper sanitary condition for his large family. A new roof over his home is also needed.
Short Term Impact
In the short term, a local window company will be contracted with to manufacture the windows in the unfinished rooms. Roofing materials will also be purchased locally, thus positively impacting the local economy. Local construction teams will be hired to do the reconstruction and renovation work.
Long Term Impact
In the long term, homes in these communities will be improved beyond their previous condition. In addition, making significant improvements to villager’s homes will improve villager’s attitudes and moral, which is equally as important as their living conditions.
Sponsors Benefits
All sponsors of this important project will be listed on The Paros Foundation’s website and in all press related to this project. Visits to these communities can be arranged for sponsors visiting Armenia.
The Paros Foundation launched the Debi Arach Children’s Center in Gyumri, Armenia on April 15, 2015 with the help of generous donors. The center, which provides 185 children each week the necessary academic, psychological, social and humanitarian support, has since been a source of positivity in this city. The residents of Gyumri, Armenia’s second largest city have endured very devastating realities since the tragic 1988 Spitak Earthquake. More than 100,000 residents were left homeless, and plagued with unemployment and rampant poverty for years to come. In turn, the fate of children in Gyumri has also been affected. Dealing with the difficulty of finding means to feed and care for their families, many parents are unable to provide their children with the proper guidance, supervision, educational aid and the financial resources for them to excel in school and have successful futures. The Debi Arach Children’s Center, which in Armenian means “moving forward,” helps these socially vulnerable children through a holistic approach providing them with both humanitarian and educational support. The center provides counseling and group therapy with a psychologist on staff, homework help and tutoring for almost every subject the children learn in school including English, Math, Art/Design, and Computer classes. Additionally, they are served a nutritious meal everyday, helping them receive the calories and/or nutrients they would otherwise not have. Furthermore, the Center addresses a very important hygienic need by providing the children in attendance with supervised bathing facilities. The goal is to help hundreds of children develop a vision for a successful future, and to give them the skills they need to reach these goals. This project is impacting the lives of hundreds of socially vulnerable children by helping them gain the guidance and support they need in order to create greater future opportunities, and become successful individuals and good citizens.
To date, the center has already had several important successes. At least nine children have been taken out of boarding schools, attend our center and now live back at home with their families. Many of the children who were receiving poor grades in school are now achieving top scores. The children have become socially well adjusted and much more healthier than before with the continued consumption of multi-vitamins and a daily well-balanced meal. Staff trainings take place with an academic counsel of professionals from the United States and Armenia to ensure that the children are receiving the best care, treatment and methods for their development.
The center is working on funding year ten and raising additional funds in order to develop and add to the programs and classes offered with the ability to hire more educators, and get more supplies, and equipment. Funds will also be used to supplement daily activities, hold forums for guest speakers and provide educational and career planning opportunities. $92,000 is needed to cover operating costs for the Center. In January of 2017, Debi Arach successfully launched its first program within its Vocational Training Center, teaching children computer programming, 3d printing and robotics curriculum. The goal of this newest component is to provide these children with marketable job skills in order to help them work themselves out of poverty. In 2019, with the long term commitment by Dr. & Mrs. Gary and Linda Assarian (MI) the vocational training program was renamed the Assarian Vocational Training Program.
Region
Shirak / Շիրակ
City / Village
Gyumri / Գյումրի
Start Date
April 2025
End Date
March 2026
The Need
Thousands of children in Gyumri are living in extreme poverty, with no hope for a decent future. These socially vulnerable children are in need of a safe and enriching environment where they can receive additional guidance through social, psychological and academic support giving them a chance to break their cycle of poverty. The children’s center will continue to provide these children with the opportunity to attend afterschool and summer school programs providing them with the additional skills necessary for a successful future. Additionally, these children suffer from malnutrition and related illnesses due to a lack of well-balanced meals. The center will continue to provide each child with a nutritious meal everyday, helping them receive the calories and/or nutrients they need. Furthermore, many families were forced to take refuge in overseas shipping containers (domiks), or in condemned buildings after the devastating 1988 Spitak Earthquake or due to their poor socioeconomic status. An entire generation of children has grown up in deplorable conditions, often times with no running water and little or no heat to take showers. The Center will address this very important hygienic need by continuing to provide the children in attendance with supervised new bathing facilities.
Short Term Impact
The short-term 185 children will receive immediate support and guidance to help them succeed for the second year. The Center will continue offer nutritious meals, bathing facilities, counseling opportunities, homework aid and tutoring and core classes including English, Computer, Art/Design, and Math.
Long Term Impact
In the long term, with the success of the Center’s current offerings, additional classes and programs will be added and attendance will rise. The number of children growing up in poverty in the future will decrease as the number of children successfully graduating from our program and continuing onto college or successful vocations increases. The number of “social orphans” and children temporarily residing in boarding schools in Gyumri will be reduced as parents become increasingly able to keep their children at home given the humanitarian support they receive at the center. Through ongoing employment opportunities created, several families will continue to receive a fair wage, hence improving Gyumri’s economy.
Sponsors Benefits
Your donation to sponsor the operating cost for 2025 of the Debi Arach Children’s Center in Gyumri will be recognized with a plaque at the Center and on the Center’s website and in their printed materials. Your name will also be listed as a sponsor on The Paros Foundation website and in appropriate press related to this important project. The Paros Foundation will proudly arrange a visit to the new Center when you are in Armenia.
Due to an increase of children attending the center, Debi Arach is in need of an additional $4,500 to obtain six new computers to add to their computer lab.
July 30, 2025
Today SERVICE Armenia 2025 visited Debi Arach spending time with the children and distributing backpacks.
The Ghoghanj Children’s Center located in the Kentron of Yerevan provides afterschool and summer school programs for approximately 85 children every month. Children who attend the Center are loosely defined as “at risk.” These children typically come from very poor households, often times with a single head of household, who cannot pay for such assistance. The goal of the Ghoghanj Children’s Center is to provide the necessary academic, psychological and social support to ensure that the children attending mature to well adjusted, successful, young adults.
In order to further impact more “at-risk” children, the Center has identified a need for this model to be replicated and offered to other communities in Armenia. Through the generous support of the Dadourian Foundation, a second center for “at-risk” children was opened in 2014 in the Nor Nork neighborhood of Yerevan to provide support to 85 additional children annually. The new center has provided students the same core classes daily (English, Russian, Computer, Design, Painting, Theater and Dance) as the Ghoghanj Children’s Center – Kentron. The goal of this project is to broaden the services offered to socially vulnerable children and families in other communities and provide them with the proper support and guidance needed to excel in school and become self-confident and respectful young adults.
Amount will include rent, utilities, teacher salaries, maintenance and additional improvements, and supplies.
Region
Yerevan / Երևան
City / Village
Nor Nork / Նոր Նորք
Start Date
September 2025
End Date
August 2026
The Need
Children living in the community of Nor Nork in Yerevan are in need of additional guidance through social, psychological and academic support. A second center for these kids has been opened and needs financial support in order to cover operational costs for the following school year 2025-2026.
Short Term Impact
In the short term, sponsorship of this project will help continue to employ teachers, and provide 85 children in the Nor Nork neighborhood of Yerevan with their needed tutoring and guidance.
Long Term Impact
In the long term, this project has the potential of impacting the lives of 85-100 at-risk students by helping them gain the guidance and support they need in order to create greater future opportunities, and become successful individuals and good citizens.
Sponsors Benefits
Your donation to fund the operational costs for the 2025-2026 school year for Ghoghanj-Nor Nork will be recognized with a plaque at the Center and on the Center’s website and in their printed materials. Your name will also be listed as a sponsor on The Paros Foundation website and in appropriate press related to this important project. The Paros Foundation will happily arrange a visit to the center when you are in Armenia.
Nourishing Armenia aims to create a lasting impact on the health and well-being of children and families in Armenia.
Armenia stands at a crossroads of opportunity and need. Rates of childhood malnutrition and obesity are both rising. Many families face limited access to fresh, nutrient-rich foods due to economic barriers or lack of agricultural infrastructure. At the same time, nutrition education and clinical dietetics remain largely absent from the country’s educational and healthcare systems.
Food insecurity and poor nutrition fuel chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and anemia — all of which threaten the nation’s long-term wellbeing. Without intervention, these patterns will continue to weaken families, communities, and the economy.
But Armenia’s potential is immense. The country has a strong agricultural heritage, a growing youth population, and a deep sense of community — the perfect foundation for a national movement in food literacy and health. To build a healthier future requires action on multiple fronts: schools, farms, universities, and the health system.
Nourishing Armenia brings together education, agriculture, and healthcare to create lasting, community-led change. We aim to build a culture where every child understands what healthy food means, every healthcare provider can prescribe nutrition as part of healing, and every school can feed both minds and bodies.
In the short time since Nourishing Armenia’s launch in the spring of 2025, several successes have already been realized including:
The successful development and launch of the Nourishing Armenia Summer curriculum and activity schedule for 180 at the Debi Arach Children’s Center.
The construction and launch of a greenhouse, serving as a living classroom at the Debi Arach Children’s Center.
The successful development and launch of the Nourishing Armenia curriculum for the 25/26 academic year at the Debi Arach Children’s Center.
This effort has been met with tremendous enthusiasm by the children at the Center and prove that nutrition has a welcomed place in a child’s education if presented correctly. Our work and future plans are in consultation with both the Ministries of Health and Education, and tie into their goals of promoting nutrition and healthy eating as a tool in the fight against chronic diseases. Our next phase includes developing and implementing the following programs:
Nourishing Armenia at Debi Arach. For $150 we can feed, educate and engage students at the Center for an entire year! This amount includes nutritious daily meals, cooking workshops and mentorship.
Hamov Hub Clubs as extracurricular activities as a pilot project in 10 schools throughout Armenia serving 15 students per club.
Hamov Hub cooking show at Debi Arach engaging 180 students in designing, filming and posting healthy cooking recipes via YouTube to educate children everywhere.
Sustainable Food Systems through the construction of additional greenhouses and chicken coops in appropriate village settings.
Undergraduate and graduate university programs in Clinical Dietetics to train future nutrition leaders including dietitians, clinical nutritionists, educators and public health specialists.
CME courses for doctors and nurses in coordination with the Armenian National Institutes of Health, which will provide healthcare workers valuable tools on how to incorporate nutrition into healthcare.
Funding is immediately needed to continue supporting Nourishing Armenia’s programming. Please consider supporting the following:
$150 feeds one child for a full year at Debi Arach’s after-school program.
$2,500 supports one Hamov Hub Club including supplies, ingredients and educator trainings.
$5,000 supports the startup trainings and set creation of Hamov Hub YouTube cooking show at Debi Arach
$7,500 establishes a chicken coop at the community living center for elderly Artsakh refugees in Verishen.
$10,000 develops and delivers CME nutrition courses for 50 healthcare professionals
$20,000 builds and equips one greenhouse
$50,000 supports the creation and accreditation of Undergraduate and graduate university programs in Clinical Dietetics.
Thousands of children in Armenia face the harsh reality of malnutrition, which affects their growth, development, future health outcomes and overall quality of life. With 34% of the population living in poverty, this is an area of immense need. Many families struggle to provide basic non-perishable food staples due to economic, housing, and health-related constraints. Through education, the establishment of meaningful and engaging curriculum, greenhouses and chicken coops, Nourishing Armenia will positively impact Armenia’s overall health.
Short Term Impact
In the short term, we expect to directly benefit more than 300 children through access to fresh produce and nutrition education while simultaneously providing hands-on experience in the areas of cooking, teaching, agriculture, and homesteading. These experiences are designed to expose children to different opportunities for career paths in the future. The initiative will also create local job opportunities for community members to teach homesteading practices like drying fruit and pickling vegetables and farming practices like harvesting crops and tending to chicken coops through engaging activities with the children.
Long Term Impact
In the long run, we anticipate taking the first steps toward a reduction in pediatric malnutrition rates in these regions. We aim to break the cycle of poverty and malnutrition and to provide tools to help fight Armenia’s chronic disease through healthy nutrition.
Sponsors Benefits
Your generous contribution to the Nourishing Armenia project will be recognized in various ways:
Your name will be displayed on a plaque at the greenhouse site.
Recognition on our website and in printed materials related to the project.
Regular updates on the project’s progress and impact.
Visits to these communities can be arranged for sponsors visiting Armenia.
Construction on the Nourishing Armenia Gyumri Greenhouse has begun.
March 25, 2025
Nutritionist, Stephanie Sudjian, who is spearheaded the Nourishing Armenia! project spent the day at Debi Arach teaching the children how to make nutritious smoothies. She was also able to check in on the progress of the Nourishing Armenia Gyumri Greenhouse. The greenhouse will serve as a sustainable food option to promote healthy eating, which aims to create a lasting impact on the health & well-being of children and families in Armenia.
June 4, 2025
The Nourishing Armenia Summer program began today at Debi Arach! The children are very excited for this new and fun activity based program.
June 21, 2025
Construction on the new greenhouse and living classroom at Debi Arach is completed. The team completed running the drip irrigation system today!
September 17, 2025
Because of the overwhelming success of Nourishing Armenia’s summer programming, we have decided to continue this important program as a year-round curriculum! Today was the first day!
October 4, 2025
With Nourishing Armenia Founder and Chair visiting Armenia, we officially cut the ribbon on the Greenhouse at Debi Arach!
October 29, 2025
With weekly Nourishing Armenia classes in full swing and students now working in the greenhouse, the excitement level at class time is over the top!
They say 60 is the new 50 and our Executive Director, Peter Abajian, is making sure we don’t forget that! To celebrate this milestone birthday we are raising $50,000 to go towards Debi Arach Children’s Center! If anyone knows Peter they know he is full of life and joy, and ultimately has the biggest giving heart so we thought it would be perfect to give in a big way. Join us in celebrating 50 as the new 60 and let’s make a sizeable dent in the Debi Arach operation budget for this upcoming year!
The Paros Foundation launched the Debi Arach Children’s Center in Gyumri, Armenia on April 15, 2015 with the help of generous donors. The center, which provides 185 children each week the necessary academic, psychological, social and humanitarian support, has since been a source of positivity in this city.
To date, the center has already had several important successes. At least nine children have been taken out of boarding schools, attend our center and now live back at home with their families. Many of the children who were receiving poor grades in school are now achieving top scores. The children have become socially well-adjusted and much healthier than before with the continued consumption of multi-vitamins and a daily well-balanced meal. Staff trainings take place with an academic counsel of professionals from the United States and Armenia to ensure that the children are receiving the best care, treatment and methods for their development..
Thank you to everyone who generously donated in honor of Peter’s 60th birthday! Your donations helped us raise $16,000 for the Debi Arach operating budget and that is the best birthday gift of all.
The Kharpert Home for Special Children is an orphanage located in the village of Nor Kharpert serving more than 250 children with varying degrees of developmental disabilities. The orphanage is a state run facility that receives governmental support to provide these vulnerable children with their basic care and education.
Excursions for these children to amusement parks and/or other appropriate venues provide these children with both valuable community experience and needed recreation. Children with disabilities in Armenia are generally kept sheltered from society. These children do not attend school, but rather attend classes at the orphanage. It is important for both these children and society for these children to experience community life.
This August, the kids from he Kharpert Home have a special trip planned. They will be giving a concert, during which they will be singing and dancing in Goshavank. Although they are very excited for this special opportunity they are in need of funding to make this trip possible. They will need $1,000 to cover the costs of hotel rooms and transport to and from Goshavank. Please consider supporting this important project for the Kharpert Home.
Region
Ararat
City / Village
Nor Kharpert
Start Date
August 31, 2024
End Date
August 31, 2024
The Need
Approximately 1,200 children live in Armenia’s 15 orphanages. While these facilities provide basic care for these children, their limited funding does not permit these children regular visits and participate in various social and cultural activities. A child with a disability has very few opportunities to visit the city and experience life outside of the grounds of the Kharpert Home for Special Children.
Short Term Impact
The short-term impact of this project will help children from the Kharpert Home travel to Goshavank on an away trip and be able to perform their song and dance concert.
Long Term Impact
This project has considerable long-term benefits for both the children and for society. Society’s attitudes towards people with disabilities will slowly begin to change as witness these children regularly and realize that society can indeed accommodate them as part of their community. This project will also gift the children a special day they will cherish in their memories for a long time.
Sponsors Benefits
Your donation to the Kharpert Home for Special Children will be recognized at the Center and your name listed as a sponsor on The Paros Foundation website and in appropriate press related to this important project. The Paros Foundation stands ready to help you arrange a visit to the Kharpert Home for Special Children when you are in Armenia.
The town of Goris is located in Armenia’s Syunik Region with a population of 17,113. Following the mass exodus from Artsakh in September 2023, many refugees have settled in this border community.
One particularly vulnerable group in Armenia are older Artsakh refugees. Most of them do not have families to look after them and they are left to fend for themselves. The Paros Foundation is excited to launch a new effort to provide permanent housing for older Artsakh refugees with the purchase of a home in Verishen, Armenia which is adjacent to Goris.
It will serve as a group home for older refugees to offer them a clean, safe, and comfortable environment to live dignified lives. Ten residents will be selected from older refugees currently living in Goris. The project will be administered in coordination with the local Goris government and renovations on the home will be starting in the coming weeks.
The home has a large footprint that will provide both communal and private living spaces in addition to a large plot of land with fruit trees and garden spaces. The home even has a chicken coop should the future residents care to keep chickens! It is envisioned that the home will be equipped with both solar hot water systems and solar panels to keep utility costs low.
While the home has already been purchased, complete renovations, furniture and appliances will cost an additional $60,000.
This is the newest housing project in a series of successful permanent housing that The Paros Foundation has purchased and renovated for Artsakh refugees including three in Geghamasar, two in Meds Masrik, two in Vardenis, one in Nerkin Karmir Aghbyur, four in Kajaran, and 10 new homes that are being built in the village of Qeti. With this addition, The Paros Foundation continues to assist refugees of every age, building not just homes, but communities where they can restart their lives.
Many older refugees are struggling to make a living and afford safe housing. Older refugees need clean, safe, and comfortable housing to live dignified lives.
Short Term Impact
In the short term, work will be done to renovate this home. The local economy will benefit as materials and labor will be secured locally whenever possible.
Long Term Impact
In the long term, refugees will not have to worry about how they will afford to live. They will be able to live comfortably with other older refugees.
Sponsors Benefits
All sponsors of this important project will be listed on The Paros Foundation’s website and in all press related to this project. Visits to these communities can be arranged for sponsors visiting Armenia.
Our Paros team visited Verishen, the site where the Community Living Home will be built. During the visit, they successfully planned and finalized the construction layout. Once completed, this home will accommodate 10 elderly Artsakh refugees, offering them a sense of community and belonging.
November 13, 2024
So excited to announce that the work is ongoing on the “Community Living for Older Refugees” Home in Verishen settlement of Goris community in Syunik province of Armenia. Thank you, UNHCR Armenia and European Union for your generous and timely support and Action Against Hunger South Caucasus for ensuring sound technical assistance in the renovation of a new home for refugees and local older people in Goris community.
January 31, 2025
Construction on the home is complete! A ribbon cutting was held to celebrate the end of production. Soon the residents will move in and have permanent and stable housing.
Nor Ughi Village is located in Armenia’s Ararat Region and is home to the Vedi Alcohol Company. Almost 2,000 people call Nor Ughi and neighboring Ginevet Village their home. Many in these villages are employed at Vedi Alcohol factory or are engaged in agricultural activities.
170 students attend the village school, including 10 displaced students from Artsakh. The students are from both the neighboring villages of Ginevet and Nor Ughi. Recently, the school gym was renovated through the leadership of Mr. and Mrs. John & June Mangassarian from Rhode Island and they want to continue positively impacting Nor Ughi. In collaboration with GOALS – Girls of Armenia Leadership Soccer, a brand new soccer field will be built on the school’s grounds. The city has agreed to clear the field and remove the initial layers of soil in preparation for the field. The new high quality soccer field will be made of artificial turf and equipped with benches and lighting. The soccer field will be at the level that other organizations, such as the Football Federation, can use it for practice and tournaments. Therefore, it will serve as a space for both the students and the community.
The budget to construct the soccer field at the school is $53,000. Two separate entities have generously agreed to match all donations. Ricky, Rebecca (Rafaelian), Victoria and C.J. Caruolo will be matching all donations to honor Ralph and Lucy Rafaelian. John and June Mangassarian will also match all contributions. Therefore, for every $1, we move $3 toward our goal!
Currently, the Nor Ughi School has poor outdoor conditions and no safe space to play outside. The school needs help with funding the construction of a high quality, safe field for the children to play soccer.
Short Term Impact
In the short term, the Nor Ughi community will have a brand new soccer field to use. Construction materials will be purchased locally and the work will be completed with local labor crews.
Long Term Impact
In the long term, a new soccer field for the community of Nor Ughi will allow the youth and locals to develop leadership skills, teamwork skills, confidence building and improved overall physical health.
Sponsors Benefits
All sponsors of this important project will be listed on The Paros Foundation’s website and in all press related to this project. Visits to these communities can be arranged for sponsors visiting Armenia.
The local municipality has contributed to the project by generously clearing the field. Further construction will continue when the necessary funds become available.
June 27, 2024
We are proud to announce the official groundbreaking on the Nor Ughi School Soccer Field where work on the field has begun. Spearheaded by John and June Mangassarian, both present for the groundbreaking, this field accompanies the new gym which was also a project spearheaded by the Mangassarian family. Thank you to everyone who has helped make this field a reality.
Shgharshik is a village in the Talin Municipality of the Aragatsotn Province of Armenia, and has a population of about 600 residents.
Established in 1975, the Shgharshik Secondary School has been educating the town’s children for many years and currently services 60 students. The gymnasium at the school has heating, but is run down and is in need of renovations. Currently, students cannot utilize the gym in its entirety because of the fact that the existing wood flooring is rotten and unsafe to walk on in many areas. To make the gym safe and usable again, we will add two new windows that open to improve ventilation, install new electrical and lighting, replace the rotting wooden flooring with vinyl, add new basketball backboards, install new netting over the windows, add new benches, and repair the walls by fixing the moisture problems from outside and then painting and sealing the walls.
60 students that attend the Shgharshik Secondary School cannot use the school’s gym because it is in need of a full renovation. The school’s modest annual budget does not allow it to renovate this facility.
Short Term Impact
In the short term, the village will receive a modest economic benefits of construction related costs as construction materials will be purchased locally and the work will be completed with local labor crews. Once completed, 60 students at the school will receive the benefits of having a fully functioning gym at the school.
Long Term Impact
Over the useful life of the school’s gym renovation, an estimated 2,000 children will receive the benefits of sports at their school. This will promote both a healthier lifestyle and help them focus on their studies.
Sponsors Benefits
All sponsors of this important project will be listed on The Paros Foundation’s website and in all press related to this project. Sponsor names will also be listed on a plaque at the school. Visits to these communities can be arranged for sponsors visiting Armenia.
SERVICE Armenia 2025 participants spend the afternoon working hard to mix and poor cement to pave the outer walkway around the Shgharshik gym. This walkway also serves as a preventative measure for water intrusion.
October 12, 2025
Renovation work at the Shgharshik School Gym is now complete. The gym has brand new floors, new windows, basketball hoops and ready for the children to use.
November 11, 2025
Arevig Gabriel, who spreaheaded this wonderful project with the help of her family and friends, was able to visit and participate in the official ribbon cutting ceremony for the gym. Special thank you to all who donated and Hoops4Hayastan for their generous gift towards this project.
