By Eileen Chopourian Stephey
The Armenian Martyrs’ Congregational Church in Havertown, Pa., hosted a benefit concert on June 2 featuring the Grace Kelly Quintet. The concert raised money and awareness for the Khoren and Shooshanig Avedisian School in Yerevan, Armenia. The highly successful evening, co-chaired by Eileen Chopourian Stephey and Tom Momjian, was supported by the Armenian and local communities, with over 200 attendees filling the sanctuary. Delicious, light refreshments were provided before the concert.
Groundbreaking for the new Avedisian School took place on June 22. The school will employ state of the art energy efficient technology in its construction and become the first LEED-certified building in Armenia. Pamela and Ed Avedisian attended the June 2 concert, where Ed spoke briefly about the award-winning school and invited the audience to participate in the project with their financial support.
Kelly’s quintet included the hymns “Blessed Assurance,” “Amazing Grace,” and “Sweet Hour of Prayer” from the CD “Grace” in the performance. Saxophonist Grace Kelly also sang some of her own compositions. The musicians, which included Jason Palmer on trumpet, Evan Gregor on bass, Pete McCann on guitar, and Jordan Perlson on drums, quickly established a warm rapport with the audience and received a standing ovation following their final number.
Kelly and her family have long been supportive of the Avedisian School building project and performed at a fundraising concert in Lexington, Mass., in January for the Avedisian School.
For more information about the Avedisian School Building Project and how you can help, call the Armenian Missionary Association of America (AMAA) at (201) 265-2607 or visit www.amaa.org. For more information about Grace Kelly, visit www.gracekellymusic.com.
The AMAA serves the religious, educational, and social needs of Armenian communities around the world. The AMAA was founded in 1918 in Worcester, Mass., and was incorporated in New York in 1920. AMAA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
