MONTEBELLO—On Saturday, March 23 more than 300 members of the Montebello Armenian Community joined together to help raise over $35,000 to help fund the general budget of the Armenian Mesrobian School and renovations at the Montebello Armenian Center. The event is the annual fundraiser hosted by the ARF Dro Gomideh and was co-hosted by the Mesrobian School Board, Mesrobian PFC, Club Mesrobian Alumni and the Holy Cross Cathedral Board of Trustees. The entertainment for the evening was provided by singers Harout Bedrosian and Kristapor Arabian.
The keynote speakers for the evening were ARF Dro Gomideh Co-Chair Stepan Altounian and new Mesrobian School Principal David Ghoogasian.
In his remarks, Stepan Altounian observed that the Montebello Armenian community is built on three pillars, the School, the Church and the Armenian Center “If any of those three pillars is weakened the community suffers.”
Altounian’s comments were echoed by Principal David Ghoogasian, “Our community is an ecosystem and we are all interconnected. When nutrients are introduced into the ecosystem those nutrients are eaten by fish, who are in turn eaten by bigger fish, who are then eaten by birds who carry those nutrients throughout the ecosystem. Our community functions in much the same way. When one of us thrives we all thrive.”
The event was considered a success by the event’s organizers as it helped bring together several facets of the community in addition to raising funds for these important causes. “We have had several successful community events this year in Montebello and we’re looking forward to many, many more,” said ARF Dro Gomideh Co-Chair Ara Malazian who offered special thanks to the Holy Cross Cathedral Board for their generous donation of $16,000 to the Armenian Mesrobian School that evening.
