Saturday, June 22, 2024 was a milestone day for the Tekeyan Cultural Association (TCA) Metro Los Angeles Chapter with the blessing of a stone cross (khatchkar) from Armenia at the Tekeyan Cultural Association Beshgeturian Center in Altadena, California.
The program began with the AGBU Pasadena-Glendale and LA San Fernando Valley Scouts leading the national anthem and Armenian national anthem.
Immediately following, His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate, Western Diocese of the Armenian Church, blessed the khatchkar accompanied by Very Rev. Fr. Eremia Abgaryan, Very Rev. Fr. Anania Tsaturyan, Rev. Fr. Moushegh Tashjian, Rev. Fr. Vazken Movsessian and Dn. Armen Jesralyan.
Mihran Toumajan of the TCA Metro Los Angeles Chapter and Assistant Secretary of the Central Board of the Tekeyan Cultural Association of the United States and Canada, welcomed the audience and noted that the khatchkar was the work of Varazdat Hambardzumyan, the preeminent khatchkar sculptor in Armenia. In 2010 Hambardzumyan was awarded a Gold Medal from the Ministry of Culture of Armenia, which is the highest honor awarded by the Ministry for contributions to Armenian culture. Unquestionably, the khatchkar has already become a landmark to Armenians and non-Armenians – a highly visible symbol of the Armenian identity and faith – on the Altadena and Pasadena border.
Toumajan noted that the khatchkar was donated by Mr. Dean Shahinian, Esq. of Washington, D.C., an ardent supporter of the Armenian Church, Armenian culture and religious architecture. He expressed gratitude and appreciation for Mr. Shahinian’s khatchkar donation to the TCA Beshgeturian Center and for his continued support of the TCA Metro Los Angeles Chapter. Toumajan also thanked the Central Board of the Tekeyan Cultural Association of the United States and Canada, as well as those who contributed towards the installation of the khatchkar. Toumajan stated that although Mr. Shahinian had been unable to attend the khatchkar blessing, he had expressed that “the way that our faith has shaped our art” had motivated him to donate the khatchkar and added “we have a rich culture.” His goal was for the khatchkar to “educate and inspire those who see it.”
In recognition of Mr. Shahinian’s donation, the khatchkar was dedicated in memory of his maternal grandfather, Rev. Fr. Vahan (Manoug) Jelalian, who was born in Palu in 1891. Jelalian had been a student at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, when he joined the Armenian Legion as a volunteer soldier with the goal of fighting the Turks and liberating Cilicia. After the evacuation of Cilicia, he taught at the Melkonian Educational Institute in Cyprus. In 1936, he was ordained a priest in Cyprus and returned to the United States to serve as a pastor of Armenian Apostolic Churches in Detroit, Providence and Paterson, New Jersey.
Remarks were made by Dr. Karen Israyelyan, Consul General of the Republic of Armenia in Los Angeles. He was accompanied at the khatchkar blessing by his wife, Mrs. Anna Israyelyan, and Ms. Nazeli Hambardzumyan, Counselor of the Consulate General of Armenia. In his remarks, Dr. Israyelyan saluted the TCA Metro Los Angeles Chapter in realizing such a critical cultural undertaking. He emphasized that it was especially important for young generations of Armenians to feel inspired by the creative symbolism of khatchkars, which are revered across the Republic of Armenia as symbols of faith, fortitude and resilience.
