Yesterday the Executive Director of Hayastan All-Armenian Fund Ara Vardanyan summed up preliminary results of the 13th Telethon. The names of those who donated more than $100, 000 were issued. The rest information on donors will be issued in January 2011.
There are only a few names from Armenia’s major businessmen on the list of donators. Among large donors are Samvel Aleksanyan with $200,000, Mikhail Baghdasarov and Barsegh Beglaryan – $100,000 each. Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine donated $500,000, whereas Viva Cell MTS – $470,000. This year Gagik Tsarukyan didn’t donate any money because as Vardanyan informed Tsarukyan continues the construction of a sports school in Stepanakert, which started 2 years ago. And he will spend at least 2.5-3 million dollars. “Here problems were created when transporting construction materials for the construction of the school,” said Vardanyan. Majority of donors represent world spread Armenian community. The major donors are Samvel Karapetyan (head of Tashir Group) and Levon Hayrapetyan – $2 m each, Ara Abrahamyan – $ 1.6 m. Owner of Alaverdy copper smelter Valeriy Mejlumyan donated $200,000, one of the owners of Yunibank Gagik Zakaryan – $200,000, whereas the Muradyan brothers – $300,000. Most donations and pledges were received from Russia. The money raised during the Telethon will be mostly allocated to the construction and reconstruction of the water supply system in Artsakh. However, according to Ara Vardanyan, separate programs will be implemented in Tavush and Syunik marzes and Nagorno Karabakh. As it’s known the famous American-Armenian businessman Kirk Kirkorian has not been participating in telethons for several years. According to Vardanyan the reason why he doesn’t donate to telethons is that Kirkorian has created the Lindsy foundation, through which he conducts his charity activities. “Besides that, meeting with him is a complicated process. It’s necessary to go through various instances and we haven’t managed to do so. They ask money from him from all over the world,” said Vardanyan. By the way, during the last years many Armenian-American businessmen, such as Louis Simon Manukyan and Hrayr Hovnanyan don’t participate in telethons. According to certain information Louis Simon Manukyan, 90, has refused to participate in telethons because he has serious health issues. According to Vardanyan, American-Armenians often ask not to publicize their names. Three years ago the number of donators from Armenia was 3 000, this year it increased to 42 thousand. These include individuals and organizations, Ara Vardanyan said. “The main part of the funds, collected in the result of the telethon, will be directed to the solution of water supply issues of Artsakh; however the amount is not enough for solving them fully. That is why it is possible that the next year’s fundraising will be directed to the solution of the same issues,” Ara Vardanyan said. The thing is that in America there are numerous philanthropic organizations. Only in California the number is over 1000. According to Vardanyan, it would be enough if one of them donated some money on the next time a line of people and organizations would appear for money. In total in 2010 the American-Armenians donated 2.8 million USD, which exceeds the figure of the last year by 15%. However, in Vardanyan’s words, the point of the foundation is to collect most of the money from Armenia. This year Armenians from Armenia donated 1.95 million USD and the list of donators has drastically expanded. If in 2009 from Armenia 30.000 individuals and organizations were donating in 2010 the number grew to 42 thousand and 600. To the question to what extent do the former and incumbent presidents of Armenia participated in the telethon of 2010 Vardanyan responded that Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan every year participate in the telethon by donating their one-month salary. Let us remember that the monthly salary of the president of Armenia is 400.000 AMD. As of the first president of Armenia Levon Ter-Petrosyan, by whose initiative the All-Armenia fund was established in 1992, then there is no information about his participation in the telethons.