Armenian Relief Society

The Armenian Relief Society (ARS) (Armenian: Հայ Օգնութեան Միութիւն, Հ.Օ.Մ. H.O.M.), is an independent, non-governmental organization that serves the social and educational needs of Armenian communities and brings humanitarian help to communities in distress.

Founding

In January 1911, renowned intellectual Khachatur Malumian, upon arriving in the United States, encouraged Armenian women to take a more active role in the service of the Armenian people. Thus, in a period of a ten months, Maloumian organized the existing women's groups as a cohesive nationwide society. The number of chapters grew slowly, and by the date of its third Convention, held in May 2015, there were 31 registered chapters across the United States and Canada. It currently has affiliate entities in 7 different countries.

Purpose and Activity

To serve the humanitarian needs of all communities that may require emergency aid, regardless of ethnic origin or religious affiliation;
To preserve the cultural identity of the Armenian people, worldwide;
To promote the educational, social, health and welfare of communities;
To enhance the education of the Society's members and encourage their involvement in public service;
To encourage participation in local organizations engaged in community activities and social services compatible with the principles of the Society;
To act as a focal point at the informational level; and
To cooperate with organizations with similar aims.

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, October 19, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.