Held for the 7th year in a row, this year AGBU’s “Discover Armenia” program brought to Armenia 31 participants from Canada, France, Greece, Lebanon, United Arab Emirates, UK and US.  The program, coordinated by AGBU Diaspora Youth Programs Coordinator in Armenia Hermine Duzian, took place from August 7-26.

The participants visited various sites in Yerevan and the rest of Armenia, including Holy Etchmiadzin, Sardarapat, Tsisternakabert Genocide Memorial, Matenadaran, Garni, Geghard, Sevan, Khor Virap, Noravank, Goris and Artsakh, ascended mount Aragats. They also visited the Yerevan offices of AGBU and the Armenian Virtual College, where they got acquainted with the organization’s programs carried out in Armenia and Karabakh, toured the AGBU and Holy Etchmiadzin Children’s Centers. On August 10, the group was received by the RA Diaspora Minister Hranoush Hakobian.

The program also has a strong community component promoting volunteerism and service to others. As part of their community service this year’s participants of “Discover Armenia” helped construct houses for underprivileged families in Armavir and Lori regions together with Fuller organization, visited the Gavar orphanage to spend a whole day with the children and help renovate one of the orphanage rooms. They also donated new books to the foreign language literature stand of the Karabakh Children’s Library established by last year’s participants of the AGBU “Dis-cover Armenia” program.  The youths paid a visit to the AGBU and Holy Etchmiadzin Senior Dining Centers, where they prepared and served meals.

AGBU is already getting ready to follow up the success of this year’s Discover Armenia program with preparations for the summer of 2011, when a new group of bright, eager Armenian youths from around the world will arrive to explore their homeland.

“My trip to Armenia was an amazing experience. It was enlightening, and extremely rewarding”, 2010 Discover Armenia participant Raffi Khatchadourian of New York said of his summer.