P r e s s   R e l e a s e   N u m b e r   10

 

FIRST LADY, DR. BELLA KOCHARIAN VISITS
THE ARS MOTHER AND CHILD HEALTH AND BIRTHING CENTER

 

On Wednesday, October 18, Armenia’s First Lady, Dr. Bella Kocharian visited the ARS Mother and Child Health and Birthing Center in Akhurian. This was Dr. Kocharian’s first visit to the ARS center’s new maternity ward and recently completed Radiology & Scanning Department.

Dr. Kocharian was accompanied by ARS Armenia Chairperson Alvard Petrosian, who is also a member of the Republic of Armenia’s National Assembly, as well as ARS Armenia Regional Executive Board members.

On the occasion of Dr. Kocharian’s important visit, the ARS invited representatives of various women’s and social service organizations to be present, including Minister of Health Norair Davtian; Armenia’s top cancer expert Dr. Sergey Sayirian; ARF Supreme Council members Lilit Galstian and Rouzan Arakelian; ARF Commission on Women’s Issues Chairperson Maria Titizian; Shirak Province Governor Romik Manukian; and ARS Central Executive Board member Karine Hovhannisian.

The visit was fully covered and broadcast on television and radio. All the guests were deeply impressed and expressed their admiration for the Health Center’s new additions. As a token of appreciation, First Lady Kocharian presented the center with a television set.

The Mother and Child Health Center tour was followed by a visit to the Psychological Center in Gyumri which recently inaugurated a new wing built and subsidized by the Swiss “Armenianos” Fund. Center director and noted psychologist Armine Gmuir-Karapetian cooperates closely with the ARS Armenia Regional Executive Board. Over the last few years, Gmuir-Karapetian has provided expertise to the ARS Armenia on various in-depth ARS studies devoted to psychological issues faced by various segments of the population.

Dr. Kocharian was visibly impressed by what she saw at both centers and expressed her deep satisfaction for having the opportunity to witness the ARS’s important work in Gyumri. In a parting promise, the First Lady pledged to support all present and future ARS programs.

Established in 1910, the ARS is the oldest Armenian women’s organization with entities in 24 countries. To learn more about the ARS and its programs, visit the ARS’s website at www.ars1910.org or call (617) 926-5892.

November 8, 2006

 
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