The children come from socially vulnerable, impoverished families with diverse backgrounds. The majority are from single-parent homes as a result of abandonment by fathers, divorce, death of a parent, or birth out of wedlock. In some cases, this situation is compounded due to the physical disabilities of the parents of these children.
Ranging in age from five to sixteen years, all the children are entitled to the full benefits that the Center offers: food, clothing, medical, psychological and social services, tutoring, and field trips. During the school year, the children come to the Center from 2:00 to 6:00 PM, six days per week. In the summer, they also spend their afternoons at the Center. During this season, many of the children attend summer camp, which affords them the opportunity to spend a few days out of the city participating in a wide range of activities with children from all other regions of Armenia.
Orran's children are encouraged to be involved in extra-curricular activities by both their parents and the Center's staff to help develop their skills for a working career. For example:
- Two of the three Kankanyan brothers are taking special pottery lessons at the Hakop Kojoyan Art School.
- Arthur Soukiasyan, age15, attends the Taron Fine Arts School, where he is taking vocal lessons and expanding his repertoire of the songs by Arno Babajanyan, which he loves to sing.
- Karen, age 9, and Rosa Davtyan, age 12, play the piano and sing; their older sister, Datev, wants to be a singer and plays the harp and piano. Orran purchased a harp for her so she could continue her lessons.
- Christine Mkhitaryan, age 12, also attends the Hakop Kojoyan Art School, where she is taking courses in art and sculpture.
- Guyane Sargsyan, age 13, takes classes in recitation and dance at the Arabkir Hayordyats Home.
- Tatevik Davtyan, age 15, is learning hairdressing at Sebastia Vocational School.
- Grigor Kankanyan, age 17, is studying the art of jewlery making.
- Levon Gasparyan, age 18, will be a cook soon.
All of these talented children are being encouraged and assisted by Orran to develop their skills, interests and appreciation for the arts in the hope that in the long term, they will utilize them to develop a career.
Elderly neighborhood residents, who reside alone and have difficulty managing on their limited pensions, come to Orran for lunch at twelve o'clock and receive a snack to take home. While the educational background of this group varies from those who completed their primary education to those with university degrees, they nevertheless enjoy sharing their experiences with one another and have animated discussions about current events and local political issues. The elderly are very appreciative of the food that they receive six days per week, as well as the clothing and shoes that are provided to them when needed. This group values the attention they receive from the staff and the friendships they develop with the Orran children during the cross-generational activities that take place at the Center.
|
|
|
