AGBU Young Professionals and ANC Host Screening of “Orphans of the Genocide” for NY/NJ Community

By AGBU YPGNY and ANC-NY Contributors

New York, NY — The AGBU Young Professionals of Greater New York (AGBU YPGNY) and the Armenian National Committee of New York (ANC-NY) cosponsored a screening of “Orphans of the Genocide” on Thursday, May 16, 2013. The film, created by Florida-based, four-time regional Emmy award winning filmmaker Bared Maronian, was shown at the AGBU Central Office in New York City.

“The ANC of New York is pleased to work with Mr. Maronian to spread awareness of this significant film,” said ANC-NY co-chair Arousiag Markarian. “The documentary tells an important story in the history of the Armenian people, and we are happy to showcase the work of Mr. Maronian, a longtime active community member in Florida.”

Nominated for a regional Emmy award, “Orphans” is a groundbreaking 90-minute documentary that takes the viewer through never-before-seen archival footage and discovered memoirs of orphans who lived through the 20th century’s first fully documented genocide. It profiles orphans while unveiling many orphanages where Armenians were housed in the Middle East. The film also explores the humanitarian efforts of the American Near East Relief in saving, feeding and sheltering more than 150,000 documented Armenian Genocide orphans between 1919 and 1926.

“We are so proud that photos and documents from the AGBU archives and Noubarian Library in Paris helped with the production, especially since YPGNY was instrumental in acquiring the archival photos,” said AGBU YPGNY vice chair Lindsey Hagopian. Responding to a call from a concerned Armenian American who had stumbled upon the relics, several YPGNY committee members and their friends took the initiative to purchase the collection of photos from a military antiques shop in Los Angeles more than a decade ago.  It was discovered that the photos had belonged to Ellen Mary Gerard, a Near East Relief nurse who had volunteered in Syria and Lebanon for three years, serving over 1,000 Armenian orphans during her tenure. The AGBU YPGNY Gerard Archive can be viewed at http://www.flickr.com/photos/agbu/sets. 

Maronian has also made use of archival photos and documents from the Rockefeller Archive Center, Das Bundesarchiv (German National Archives), Statens Arkiver (Danish National Archives), the Library of Congress, U.S. National Archives, the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute, Houshamadyan, the Armenian Relief Society and other private archival collections. 

Founded in 2006, Maronian’s Armenoid Productions has produced numerous award-winning Armenian-themed documentaries, among them “Komitas Hayrig” and “The Wall of the Genocide.”  “Orphans” took a little more than three years to complete. His next project is under the working title of “Women of 1915,” dealing with the plight of the Armenian women during the genocide, and paying tribute to all of the non-Armenian women who came to the rescue of their sisters.  Maronian was interviewed by Voice of Armenians TV New York, and the segment is set to be broadcast in the coming weeks.

Local AGBU and ANCA chapters and committees are encouraged to reach out to their local PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) stations to urge them to air “Orphans.” The film has already been broadcast by a number of PBS stations, including ValleyPBS, Station KPVT 18 in Fresno, California, and WMHT in Troy, New York. Readers interested in screening “Orphans of the Genocide” for their community may send an email to armenoid@comcast.net.