Ongoing Assistance

In the aftermath of the massive explosion at the Port of Beirut in 2020, AGBU offered free open-ended trauma counseling sessions to children impacted by the disaster. The sessions continue for those who need it, offering a safe place for the therapeutic self-expression that fosters mental health.

In Armenia, AGBU launched a summer retreat program for children affected by the Artsakh War. Camp Nairi offers a compassionate and supportive place for youth to spend time in the great outdoors and provide mindful activities aimed both at healing and allowing children to be children. The program is run by experienced staff and supported by mental health professionals. 

The walk-in AGBU Claudia Nazarian Polyclinic was established to exclusively treat Syrian Armenian refugees. The facility is staffed with doctors who immigrated from Syria who seamlessly relate to the unique challenges of their fellow displaced community. It offers trauma counseling, general and specialized care (including pediatrics), and identifies funding sources for cases involving more serious medical conditions and procedures. 

During the Syrian War, the AGBU Alex Manoogian School in Montreal pioneered a best-practice Integration Model for newly arrived Armenian students to learn French, English and Armenian on an accelerated track without falling behind on their other grade level subjects. The proprietary method quickly gained attention across the regional school system for application to other immigrant communities. 

For families hoping to build new lives and livelihoods, AGBU has worked with communities resettling in Armenia with initiatives like Seeds of Hope and the Olive Tree Program offering loans of agriculture equipment and supplies for start up farmers. By providing them with a basis for income generation, we helped them become active members of the community. 

AGBU understands the importance of continuity in education. For displaced students we provide tuition aid and scholarships at AGBU day schools as well as university students and colleges across the globe. 

Providing vulnerable Armenian communities with easy access to free health care and trauma counseling is central to AGBU's long-term assistance to survivors, disaster victims and refugees. In the early-mid 20th century, we opened medical dispensaries in poor areas of Lebanon which were then sadly subject to war and conflict in the decades to come. These dispensaries are still active today serving the greater Lebanese and Armenian-Lebanese community.