Texas and Utah Armenians

by David ZenianHouston - Armenia has a dozen or so ambassadors serving in the major capitals of the world, but not all are accredited diplomats.One such person is Dr. Garabed Eknoyan of Texas, the president-elect of the National Kidney Foundation and a highly successful nephrologist and "roving ambassador" who combines the science of healing with the history of ancient medicine.As one of the major driving forces behind the International Association for the History of Nephrology, Dr. Eknoyan lectures extensively to scientific audiences around the world.

by Lisa Boghosian

by Lisa BoghosianWhen Robert and Nora Daghlian were married in 1971, they thought they'd spend the rest of their life in Lebanon. He was a successful businessman, and owner of several hardware stores. She was active in volunteer work for different organizations. Neither ever would have guessed that thirteen years later they'd end up in Salt Lake City.

by David ZenianNashville, Tennessee - A small group of worshippers gather at a church. They join a priest in prayer and move on to an adjoining hall to socialize over coffee and biscuits.A scene repeated every Sunday in thousands of communities around the United States.But this one is special. The occurrence is unique, because the worshippers are Armenian "refugees" from Azerbaijan who are re-discovering their heritage and faith - some for the first time in their lives.

by Lisa Boghosian

by Lisa BoghosianAmong the first Mormon missionaries to arrive in Turkey were Elders Ferdinand F. Hintze and James Clove, Sr. In 1887, they left their homes in Utah and traveled east toward Turkey, speaking only broken Turkish. There, Elder Clove made Constantinople the center of his mission, while Elder Hintze was inspired to continue his travels north and east as far as he could until he reached the small province in Turkey known as Sivas.

by Lisa Boghosian

by Lisa Boghosian

by David ZenianHouston - When a major medical conference in the early 1980's attracted more lawyers than health care professionals, Dr. Sarkis Kechejian realized change was in the air."The presence of anti-trust lawyers told me something," he says.Within a few years, Dr. Kechejian had phased out from the practice of cardiology and was already moving into the wider domain of health providers.U.S.-born and educated Dr. Kechejian was soon taking the first steps towards mastering the art of mixing business with a successful medical practice.

by David ZenianHouston, Texas - A lot has changed since the first Armenians settled in Texas in the 1880's. The horse and buggy is gone, electricity has replaced the kerosene lamp and county sheriffs no longer run for office on "I shoot to kill" slogans.Newcomers today arrive into an established "community," but back then Texas was a "new frontier", unknown to most Americans, and even less to Armenians half a world away, whose only knowledge of the New World was based on what they had heard from American missionaries roaming Asia Minor.

by David ZenianAustin - Nearly 40 years ago, Republican Representative Steven B. Derounian of New York distinguished himself at a Congressional hearing into the TV quiz game rigging.In the course of the deliberations, Derounian's colleagues in Congress had spared no words to praise a key witness - Charles Van Doren, whose confessions of guilt had sent shock waves across America.Taking the floor, Derounian - who now calls Austin home - said he was surprised how telling the truth under such circumstances could wash away the original crime.

by David ZenianDallas - Sam Simonian is a self-made man. His money was not inherited, and neither was the multi-million-dollar telecommunications business he built from the ground floor up with partners Elie Akilian and Mark Weinzierl.Growing up in war-torn Lebanon, he had a reputation among his peers as an adventurous teenager who would risk sniper fire just to be with friends across one of east Beirut's most dangerous confrontation lines.