Purchase a Home 17 – Kharatyan Family

Following the 1988 Spitak Earthquake, tens of thousands of people were left homeless in the City of Gyumri. Many of these families took refuge in the overseas shipping containers (domiks) that were shipped into Armenia loaded with humanitarian relief supplies, or in condemned buildings. An entire generation of children has grown up in deplorable conditions, often times with no running water and little or no heat. The Armenian government has provided most of the families that lost their homes in the Earthquake with new housing units.

As people moved out of those makeshift housing units, others moved in. The 2,500 or so families that remain are Gyumri’s desolate families, who are not in line to receive a government provided apartment. Many of these families are comprised of single mothers, multiple children and/or the disabled.

This project will identify suitable needy families who can be moved into a new apartment and can demonstrate that they can afford their monthly utilities, etc. This is a sustainable model in that families that have been moved into permanent housing in the past have had a high degree of success maintaining their families and their new homes.

Arman, Hasmik and their three children live in a domik located in one of the desolate areas of Gyumri.  Arman grew up living in this domik after the earthquake.  Now he and his family continue living in these horrible conditions without running water or gas.  Last year, they participated in the housing lottery sponsored by the city of Gyumri, unfortunately they were not lucky enough to win a new home for their family.

Once the move is complete, the make shift housing unit will be destroyed to prevent its future occupancy.