HAAF continues construction of school in Spitakashen Village

PRESS RELEASE
Hayastan All Armenian Fund
Governmental Buiding 3, Yerevan, RA
Contact: Hasmik Grigoryan
Tel: +(3741) 56 01 06 ext. 105
Fax: +(3741) 52 15 05
E-mail: pr@himnadram.org
Web: http://www.himnadram.org/

6 March, 2009

Hayastan All Armenian Fund continues construction of school in Spitakashen
Village

Following a brief winter break, work has resumed on the construction of a
new school in Spitakashen Village, located in Nagorno Karabakh’s Martuni
Region. The project, launched in October 2008 is sponsored by the Hayastan
All Armenian Fund’s Toronto local committee.

The fund undertook the initiative in response to Spitakashen’s critical need
for a new educational facility. The old school, where currently classes are
held for the 130 students of the village, is a ramshackle and unsafe
structure, built in 1935. It also lacks central heating.

Today construction of the new school’s basement is near completion and work
on the remaining structure goes on, slated to be finished by August. When
the facility opens its doors in time for the 2009-2010 academic year, it
will feature all the essential amenities of a modern school.

"Our students were overjoyed to hear that their new school will have things
like an events hall, a playground, and heating," said the school principal.

In addition to the school initiative, the Hayastan All Armenian Fund
continues to finance projects in scores of Nagorno Karabakh villages like
Spitakashen, within the framework of a far-reaching rural-development
program. These projects help boost local economies, foster educational
excellence, and stem the tide of migration. Recently the Hayastan All
Armenian Fund completed a vitally important water-supply project in
Spitakashen, significantly improving the lives of its residents.

"I am confident that, with the water-supply issue resolved and construction
of a new school, life for the 110 families of Spitakashen will become
incomparably more dignified and comfortable," said Ara Vardanyan, the fund’s
acting executive director.

Spitakashen is named after the white stones that dot the landscape in and
around the village. The residents have long used these stones for home
construction, even though the material is extremely susceptible to low
temperatures and needs to be covered with plaster for structural integrity.