ST. MARY ARMENIAN CHURCH 
SHNORHALI MONTHLY E-NEWSLETTER
OCTOBER 2020
St. Mary 72nd Armenian Fall Food Festival

St. Mary's Annual Armenian Fall Food Festival took place from October 9 to 11. As always, our dedicated volunteers worked very hard to make the festival a great success.

St. Mary Parish Council, Women's Guild and many volunteers have dedicated tremendous amount of time and energy to make 72nd Annual Armenian Food Festival once again a unique event despite all the obstacles we all are facing today. It is gratifying to note that all the efforts invested in working and organizing this year's Food Festival paid off. We happily witnessed with pride and joy as our community enjoyed the Armenian foods and culture. 

Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to all of our volunteers, sponsors and supporters who contributed and worked tirelessly to make this year's festival a great success.

Dear Parishioners and Friends,

We would like to share with you that at 12:00 noon as of October 17 , the bells of St. Mary Armenian Church has rung each day and a prayer has been offered in support of our courageous soldiers and this will be continued until the war of Artsakh is won. May God’s protection and guidance be with our Armed Forces and our compatriots in Artsakh and Armenia. We will not rest until we declare victory!
Supporting Artsakh
It gives us great pride to announce that 47 boxes of essential items(totaling over 1,300 pounds and a monetary value of over $41,000) were collected and shipped to Armenia in October. This extraordinary result is a testament to our unity, generosity, and communal spirit. Your contributions will directly support our brothers and sisters in harm’s way.
We continue to collect necessary items for future shipments. If you would still like to donate items, please click hereAlso, please continue to donate to himnadram.org/en or armeniafund.org

Candle-Light Vigil for the Fallen Heroes of Artsakh

Candle-light vigil took place on October 9th, at St. Mary Armenian Church in Washington DC to honor our fallen heroes. The community came together to pray for the souls of our soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the freedom of Armenia and Artsakh. Archbishop Vicken Aykazian, Ambassador of the U.S. H. E. Mr. Varuzhan Nersesyan and the Embassy staff joined in the prayer for the souls of our fallen soldiers and peace in Artsakh and Armenia. Let us continue to pray to our almighty God to grant protection, victory and peace to our beloved homeland.

Play Chess to Help Armenia and Artsakh 

Under the auspices of St. Mary’s Armenian Apostolic Church of Washington DC, there has been a chess tournament organized to raise money for humanitarian assistance to the vulnerable population affected by the ongoing aggression against the peaceful people of Artsakh and Armenia. This tournament is for players of different ratings and age groups. All the proceeds are donated to the All Armenia Fund.
First of four tournaments took place on October 31st and the winner of this tournament will be playing with GM Hrant Melkumyan who ranks among the Top 100 highest-rated players in the word! He is one of the greatest chess players of his generation!
Our sincere appreciation goes to one of our young parishioners Arshak Avetisyan who initiated and organized these tournaments .
Please stay tuned for the upcoming second tournament and bring your participation to support Artsakh.
For more information or questions, please contact the administrator at:
FUND RAISING FOR ARMENIA AND ARTSAKH

Saturday and Sunday, October 31st and November 1st a homemade Lahmajun Carry-Out Meal has been prepared by our Avak Society to raise much needed funds for Artsakh and Armenia.

Our special appreciation to Dertsakyan family for sponsoring this event as well as our hard working committee for their effort and continuous dedication.
St. Mary's Fundraising Efforts for Artsakh

Our efforts to raise much-needed funds for Artsakh continues. We would like to express our sincere appreciation to everyone who participated in the past weeks with their time and donations towards this important cause.
I am pleased to announce that the BarkBBQ’s event was completely sold out! It generated over $8K, which was initially matched by the Ghazarian family, bringing the total to $17k, and was subsequently matched by the Armenian Assembly, generating a donation of $35k to armeniafund.org.
Special appreciation to the Hakopian family who so generously matched $20K, which enabled St. Mary to contribute another $40K towards the fundraising efforts.
Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to all of St. Mary Community members who donated and prepared delicious baked goods for sale, which brought in $5K.
Through the dedication and hard work of our Gift Store committee, another $5k has been raised.
We also appreciate the efforts of our Avak Society's organizing committee and volunteers who over the weekend raised in excess of 10K for Artsakh.
Shortly, our Women’s Guild will be hosting a Thanksgiving Lunch and bake sale, and the portion of the proceeds will be donated to the All Armenia Fund.
These efforts will continue to help our compatriots in Artsakh and Armenia until peace prevails again across our borders by the grace of God.  

St. Mary Armenian Church
Legacy Brick Drive
Buy A Brick ... Leave A Legacy

Buy a brick and leave your legacy at St. Mary Armenian Church.
When you buy a brick, it is then engraved with your specified words or message, installed in front of the church, and becomes
a memory to view for years to come.
Laser engraved bricks will replace the existing bricks in our Church plaza,
in front of our beautiful Khatchkar, and can be dedicated to those
you wish to remember, honor Loved Ones, commemorate a
special milestone like a baptism or wedding, or
acknowledge an organization or business.
Baptism and Confirmation

October 24, 2020
Lucas David Bedrossian
Son of Adam Jirair Bedrossian and Leona Wang Bedrossian
Godparents: Hagop Semerdjian and Mariam Mutafian

May God bless our newly baptized with His love and may His protection and guidance always be with him.
Hokehankists - Requiem Services

October 4, 2020
For the souls of: All the soldiers who sacrificed their lives protecting our borders

October 11, 2020
For the soul of: Alidz Zenian
Requested by: David and Leda Zenian, Sarine Zenian, and Armen and Dr. Nathalie Zenian

October 25,2020
For the soul of: Nubar Sahakyan
Requested by: Sahakyan Family

May God rest Their Souls in peace and may His loving favor be with their loved ones. 
Wedding

October 2, 2020
Vahe Arshak Tahmassian and Kelly Ann Shallcross
Parents: Mr. Shahen Tahmassian, Mrs. Patricia Mary Krikorian
Mr. and Mrs. Nelson H. and Leonida Quisido Shallcross
Best Man: Masis Tahmassian

October 29, 2020
 
Harout Kasbarian and Tatiana Bolat
Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Zareh and Nora Kasbarian
Mr. and Mrs. Arto Bolat and Ilda Bolat
Best Man: Christopher Kasbarian
Maid of Honor: Adrianna Iskandarian

Congratulations and may God make the newly married couple worthy of the desirable crown of Holy Matrimony.
St. Mary Armenian Apostolic Church 
Rev. Fr. Hovsep Karapetyan, Pastor
4125 Fessenden Street N.W, Washington, DC 20016 
202-363-1923 / www.stmaryaac.org