Community Service is taught at the dinner table: In memory of my Grandmother
By Krikor Shahinian
My grandparents made the journey to Canada in 1962, leaving the lives they had led in Egypt behind. They did not look back. They were young with a new family, strong ambitions, and landed in our city. Quickly, they established a business, started earning incomes, enrolled the kids in schools, bought their home, and new life would begin to take form. Pretty soon, they would get involved in the Armenian Community, a burgeoning group of energetic immigrant families similar to them, hungry for their common language, culture, foods, etc.
A few years later, with some solid family growth, a successful business underway, and a growing community around them making their decision to come to Toronto more and more wise, my grandparents would undoubtedly start brainstorming about how to build the community and life around them further. I can picture their dinner table, the four of them, Kevork, Armen, Vahan, and Nairy, sitting and having a meal, discussing their day and goals, and so forth, but then always making part of the agenda to ask, what project could they dream of that would bolster Toronto’s Armenian community and help take it to new heights.
As many of you know, the Armenian community gathered at a rental property near Avenue and Dupont. For many years, there must have been great times, memories, laughs, and the growth of our culture on those grounds. But it was time to expand, so hundreds of dreamers came together with the plan to acquire and build the Armenian Community Centre of Toronto - Թորոնթոյի Հայ Կեդրոն at 45 Hallcrown Place.
Today, we stand on the very grounds of what people dreamt of building—for us. Many of these dreamers are in attendance today. They brainstormed around their respective dinner and meeting tables and came up with plans for this magical place. Since then, the agoump (club; community centre) has grown significantly, and we have all contributed to seeing and enjoying its continuous progress.
Going back to the Kololian dinner table for a minute, my grandmother was most proud of two things: her son and her daughter. Unsurprisingly, they grew up, and all those conversations and brainstorming sessions about volunteering and supporting your community around a fresh pot of dolma paid off.
My uncle Vahan recently capped off the Mosaic Institute, a not-for-profit that aims to dismantle prejudice and promote Canadian diversity. For this work and decades of philanthropic service, he was awarded the Order of Canada in 2021, one of Canada’s highest civilian honours. He and my aunt, Susie Kololian, continue to support many initiatives today.
My mother, Nairy, has taken on many chairpersonship roles in the agoump. She chaired the school board at ARS Day School and was Vice-Chair of the ARS Central Executive. In the early 2000s, Nairy also chaired the principal fundraising campaign of the Armenian Community Centre. Her team achieved their target one year ahead of schedule. This success helped pave the way for the purchase and development of 55 Hallcrown Place grounds, which today serve as our wonderful Lapoyan High School, Hamazkayin Auditorium and Homenetmen Gymnasium.
So, this part of my grandmother’s legacy will be present with our boys for years to come. To have conversations about community and volunteerism, in any capacity, at the dinner table with our children. To ask them, what do you think we need more of, playgrounds? How can we do that? How much does it cost? Who is going to do the work? Any pros and cons? And with our continuous efforts and their minds cultivated to build and grow for the broader community, who knows where it takes us?
Մեծմայրս իր ամբողջ սրտով կը հաւատար գաղութային, կամաւոր աշխատանքին: Յոյսով եմ, որ կրցած եմ ըմբռնել իր մտածելակերպը եւ նուիրուածութեան սէրը, որ այդքա՜ն ուժեղ էր եւ, որ վարակեց իր զաւակները:
Սիրելի Նենէ,
Վարձքդ կատար: Մեր կարելին պիտի ընենք, որ մեր զաւակներուն հետ մեր գաղութին ծառայելու ձեր նուիրուածութեան մասին խօսինք, սորվեցնենք ու միասնաբար իրականացնենք: ֎
*Kirkor Shahinian delivered this eulogy at Armenouhi Kololian’s funeral, which took place on July 9, 2024, at the St. Mary Armenian Apostolic Church of Toronto.
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A photo of a cherished photograph showing members of the Armenian community, including Armenouhi Kololian and her husband Kevork, presenting then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau with a handcrafted carpet made by a Canadian-Armenian artisan, embroidered with the words of the Canadian national anthem.
