The Story of Soorp Asdvadzadzin’s Loving Relationship With Nelly 

             Nelly Taloozyan was born on November 22, 1988. Her immediate family was her father, Moses; her mother, Ovsanna; and her older brother, Kevork. The family lives in Gyumrie, which is the second largest city in Armenia (next to Yerevan). Approximately two weeks after Nelly was born, on December 7, a tragic earthquake struck northern Armenia…the earthquake! About 80% of the buildings in Gyumrie were destroyed. Thousands of people were killed; many more thousands were injured. Nelly’s family, however, was spared this tragedy. They were in Yerevan at the time the earthquake struck. Ovsanna’s mother lives in Yerevan. She was helping with baby Nelly.

             A few years later, another tragedy struck Armenia. This time Nelly’s family was not so fortunate. Armenia was fighting a war against Azerbaijan. Nelly’s dad was a soldier. He went to fight in that war. He was fighting to free Armenians in an area called Artsakh (what the Russians call Nagorno Karabagh). One day, a neighbor heard on the radio that there was a fight. Some of the boys from Gyumrie were in that fight. Some were killed, but their names were not given over the radio. The neighbor told Nelly’s mom, and Ovsanna gathered her family around their dining room table to listen to the radio. They waited for news. I honestly don’t know how long they waited…maybe one hour…maybe many. Eventually names of the soldiers killed in action were listed. Nelly’s dad was on that list. At that moment, Nelly’s life would change forever. Not only is it tragic to lose a father and the bread winner of the family, but due to Armenia’s very poor economy, Nelly’s family now faced serious financial problems. These are hard times for many Armenians.

             At about this time, a member of our church, had an idea. “Wouldn’t it be a nice Christian lesson for the children of our Sunday School to sponsor a child from Armenia that was less fortunate than them?” Paperwork was filled out, and thanks to the generosity of our Ladies Guild, money was sent in. A few weeks later, we received a piece of paper that said our child’s name is “Nelly”. We also received a black and white photo (Nelly at about two years old). It was the first picture we ever received of Nelly.

             Several years later, I joined our Sunday School. One of the first things I wanted to do was to be sure our children were directly involved in raising money to help Nelly and her family. We strongly encourage our kids to help their moms bake goods for our Sunday School bake sale held at the annual church picnic each summer. We also have a children’s bake session at the church a few days before the picnic. The kids come to the church and bake cookies, cupcakes, brownies and fudge. These items are sold at the picnic bake sale. We also encourage the kids to help at the bake sale tent on the day of the picnic. The Sunday School has run this bake sale for the past twelve years.

             A few years later, Der Aram joined our church. When he was going to Armenia, I gave him Nelly’s name and address. I asked, “Der Hayr...please look up this girl. See if she is okay. See if she needs anything. Let her know there are people here in Whitinsville that care about her and pray for her. It wasn’t easy, but Der Aram and his driver Araig found Nelly’s home in Gyumrie. Der Hayr also found out that at ten years old, Nelly had never been baptized. Her family could not afford the church fee. So at ten years old, Der Aram baptized Nelly. Araig volunteered to be Nelly’s godfather. He has taken this responsibility seriously. Araig has driven back to Gyumrie many times looking in on Nelly to see if she is okay.

             The following year, Yeretsgeen Margaret and I went to Armenia. One night Araig drove us to Gyumrie to meet with Nelly in her home. Some of our Sunday School teachers and students sent gifts. We hand delivered these gifts, much to the delight of little Nelly. Some of our students also wrote letters. Yeretsgeen translated the letters, so Nelly could understand. At this time, Nelly could not speak one word of English. I could hardly speak a word of Armenian. We made a deal. She would learn a little English; I would learn a little Armenian. Then we could communicate with each other. Nelly told me she wanted to speak to the children of our church.

             Over the next few years, I kept my end of the bargain. I can now speak a little Armenian. Nelly on the other hand has studied English in school for several years. After school, every day, she has gone to a tutor (at her own expense). She has spent hundreds of hours improving her skills. Today Nelly reads, writes and speaks English very well. Thanks to her hard work, the relationship between Nelly and our church children is much more intimate. The relationship is truly a loving meaningful bond. Many of our kids write letters to Nelly. We exchange videos and phone calls.

             One summer, we took five of our teenage female Sunday School students to Armenia to do mission work. They spent about one week with Nelly. In their own words, they bonded like sisters.

             Today Nelly is a happy, well-adjusted teenager living in Armenia. She has graduated from high school (school goes to tenth grade only in Armenia). Nelly is no longer a little girl. She is becoming a young woman. Nelly attends college and is majoring in English. She has hopes that someday she will be an interpreter for some company. Nelly is very bright. She is one of seven students in her class that receives a scholarship.

             The summer of 2006 is very special for Nelly and all the members of our church in Whitinsville. On June 4, Nelly stunned everyone at Soorp Asdvadzadzin. After Badarak, during a slide presentation recapping the story of our church’s relation with Nelly, she walked into the sanctuary. When the congregation realized what was happening, they gave our special guest a standing ovation.

             There are many reasons for inviting Nelly to America. First she gets to meet the children who have assisted and loved her for years. Some of the members of our church have been to Armenia and have met Nelly. This is a reunion. Nelly will see many sights and learn much about America’s culture. She will improve her language skills. Nelly will also be a counselor at Camp Haiastan this summer. The money Nelly earns this summer will greatly assist her family when she returns to Armenia. Nelly told me recently that she has never been able to help her family. Now she can. She is beaming with pride. 

            The relationship between Nelly and the Sunday School children of Soorp Asdvadzadzin is truly a love story. It is more than that. It is the result of doing God’s work. A young child’s life has been changed from tragedy to hope; from a life with a void to a life filled with love. If you want to see for yourself how special this young child is, go to a picnic at the camp this summer. Find Nelly and say hello. When she smiles at you, you will know why all of us at Soorp Asdvadzadzin Church love Nelly Taloozyan.

                                                                                     Alan Goshgarian
                                                                                   Sunday School Director