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April 1, 2009
LITTLE ARMENIA,
CA--More than 300 Armenian youth adorned in bright green t-shirts
and armed with cleaning supplies made their way throughout the
streets of Los Angeles' Little Armenia region this past Sunday,
March 29. With rakes, shovels, brooms, bags and other utensils in
hand, the young volunteers proceeded to pick up trash, plant new
trees, and remove graffiti as part of the AYF's 6th Annual Little
Armenia Beautification Project.
“We came out here today to express our appreciation for having an
area of Los Angeles named in honor of our community and to take
ownership of what is in essence our 'home away from home,'” said
AYF Central Executive Chairman Vache Thomassian. “I am truly proud
of all of our members and supporters for showing their leadership
and taking to the streets directly to give back to their
community.”
Following the official designation of Little Armenia in 2000, the
AYF has taken upon itself to consistently show its gratitude and
ensure that the area remain clean and presentable. Working in
conjunction with Councilmember Eric Garcetti's office, hundreds of
volunteers have come together every year to revitalize the streets
of this densely populated district of East Hollywood.
This year, the task of organizing the project became the
responsibility of the community's very own Hollywood “Musa Dagh”
Chapter. Under the direction of the AYF Central Executive, the
chapter formed a committee made up entirely of local members to
organize all aspects of this major initiative.
“It's really fitting that the Hollywood chapter took on the
challenge of putting together this event, seeing as Little Armenia
falls directly under our jurisdiction,” said Arek Santikian, one
of the main organizers from the Hollywood AYF. “The entire chapter
did a lot of work and showed a tremendous amount of collective
support.”
The beautification project formally began on Saturday with a
mid-morning opening ceremony at the Hollywood Presbyterian Medical
Center, a key sponsor of this year's effort. Some of the speakers
at the ceremony included Maral Habeshian of the Hollywood
Presbyterian Medical Center and Thomassian of the AYF Central
Executive.
California State Assembly Member Kevin de Leon was another one of
the honored guests who addressed the volunteers in front of the
hospital located in the heart of Little Armenia. De Leon made a
special announcement to the crowd revealing that, starting next
month, Little Armenia signs will be erected along the 101 freeway,
designating certain exits which correspond to the district.
After listening to the opening remarks, participants were quickly
split up into three groups and began canvassing the entire region
making up Little Armenia. Several AYF members took up their
pre-designated roles as group leaders and guided their fellow
volunteers throughout the various sections of the district.
Razmig Sarkissian of the Montebello “Vahan Cardashian” Chapter,
for example, was assigned the task of leading the “Red Team,”
which began its morning with a tree planting ceremony attended by
Assembly Member de Leon in front of the auditorium of the Los
Feliz Elementary School.
Sarkissian recalled how he first began attending the AYF's
cleanup efforts as a Badanee (junior) in 2004 and has come back
every year since. “Its fun doing good work alongside friends,”
explained Sarkissian as he led his team by example and picked up
trash from the side of the street. “Plus it's our responsibility.
How can we not clean Little Armenia? It's named in honor of us.
It's our duty to make sure it looks beautiful.”
Another volunteer, Cynthia Momdjian of the Pasadena “Nigol Touman”
Chapter Executive, shared a similar sentiment. “It's great that
the AYF is taking this initiative and making sure our community is
a more pleasant place to live,” said Momdjian. “Helping clean up
this 'home away from home' and making it a beautiful place to live
is very important and that is why I am here.”
As they marched alongside one another cleaning the sidewalks,
volunteers could be also seen socializing as they worked. Many of
the participants--which included not only AYF members but also
members of Homenetmen, the AEO fraternity, Armenian Student
Association, and local community members--could be heard
introducing themselves and getting to make new friends in the
process.
In addition, lending its assistance to the initiative for the
sixth year in a row was the Hollywood Beautification Team (HBT), a
county wide organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of
life in Los Angeles. HBT's Founder and CEO, Sharyn Romano, was on
hand personally to partake in the cleanup and support the AYF in
its commitment.
“The fact that this is an ongoing effort that happens consistently
every year demonstrates the strength of this organization [the AYF],”
commented Romano. “These young people are stepping beyond their
doors and helping the community as a whole and that is something
we all must do.”
Increasing partnership and support from such community
organizations was stressed as an important aspect of what the
Beautification Project is striving to embody.
“Our collaboration, with groups such as HBT, Councilmember
Garcetti's office, Hollywood Presbyterian, Hollywood High School,
the Hollywood Studio District Neighborhood Council, AEO and others
helped make this year's cleanup an all-around great success,” said
Caspar Jivalegian, another key organizer from Hollywood's “Musa
Dagh” Chapter. Additional sponsors who made the Beautification
Project possible included Sardarabad Armenian Bookstore, ADIN of
California, Horizon Armenian Television, Asbarez, CRA/LA and the
Armenian American Chamber of Commerce.
“The success of the event serves an even larger purpose of getting
the residents of the community itself engaged and involved in the
year-round maintenance of Little Armenia,” Jivalegian added. “As
an example of the impact the volunteers' presence has on local
attitudes, he cited the many times passerby's stopped to ask the
group questions and commend their efforts.”
In one case, a local elderly Armenian woman walking by the
volunteers touchingly thanked Jivalegian and the youth for coming
out in such large numbers to clean the neighborhood. “She said she
sees us here every year,” relayed Jivalegian following the
encounter. “She hopes that people will respect what we're doing
and continue to keep the community clean.”
Indeed, in years past, the City of Los Angeles Sanitation
Department has estimated that more than 23,000 pounds of trash has
been removed as a result of AYF volunteer efforts. Indeed,
participants who have been coming back for the cleanup
consistently since its inception acknowledge a noticeable
difference.
“The streets are simply much cleaner today than they were six
years ago,” concluded Jivalegian. “That shows us that what we are
doing is having an effect beyond just the several hours a year
that we labor here.”
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