In memory of their son, Karo Hovagimyan, who was killed in the 44-day war, the parents founded a charity fund and started helping and treating the children. The fund is now one year old.
In just one year, thanks to the “Karo Hovagimyan” charity fund, 36 children received medical support, 2110 received social and 62 children received educational and cultural support, and another 786 children received a New Year’s gift. With the fund, a resource room for children with special educational needs was established in primary school No. 4 of Charentsavan.
During the event held on September 9, Karo’s father, Sargis, said: “Today is Karo Hovagimyan’s birthday, today is also the first anniversary of the charitable foundation created in Karo’s name. Perpetuating the memory of our son who died in the 44-day war, instead of erecting a stone monument, my family, together with like-minded friends, established the “Karo Hovagimyan” Charity Fund as a living monument. And, as a symbol of rebirth, the foundation day was declared exactly one year ago on this day, September 9, Karo’s birthday.”
At the event dedicated to the 1st anniversary of the charity fund, the activities and implemented programs were presented, as well as a charity exhibition-sale was held, where the handiwork of the beneficiary children was displayed. The proceeds from their sale will be directed to the realization of the dreams of the beneficiary children.
Sergeant Karo Hovagimyan was born in Syria. He was two and a half years old when the family moved to Armenia. During the 44-day war, he served as a medic first in Jrakan and then in Hadrut. The exact date of his death is still unknown. It is not known what injuries he died from. In December 2020, his bones were found and handed over to his parents.
“We are tormented by the thought that we could not get citizenship and then our son would not serve in the army. With long hair, chewing gum, he would be walking around the town now. But we wouldn’t live like that, we didn’t think like that. We were thinking that if we use the benefits of this country, this is our country, and we also have a debt to pay to this country. And we paid very dearly,” Karo’s father told us earlier.
The commander of the Karo battalion was Ishkhan Vahanyan, who is now detained. He was charged with part 3 of Article 356 (disobeying an order) and part 1 of Article 380 (voluntarily leaving the battlefield or refusing to use a weapon) of the RA Criminal Code. According to the Investigative Committee, during the aggressive war unleashed by the Republic of Azerbaijan against the Republic of Artsakh and during the 2020 martial law declared on September 27, occupying the position of the commander of the training battalion of one of the military units of the Armenian Defense Army, being the chief of his subordinate staff, Vahanyan, did not follow the orders of his immediate superior during the combat operations, as well as voluntarily left the battlefield, as a result of which one of the personnel of the training battalion of the military unit was killed. Mandatory conscripts received physical injuries of various degrees and were captured, thus causing serious consequences.
Ani Gevorgyan