Born in Ganjak, Firuza Arzumanyan lived most of her life in Berdzor, where she settled in 1994. One can only imagine the hardships endured by the people of Berdzor during those years—the struggles, the resilience. Then, in 2020, just as life seemed to have found its rhythm and people were thriving, the 44-day war broke out. Firuza, like all Berdzor residents, was forced to leave her home and seek refuge in Armenia.
A graduate of the Yerevan Conservatory, she once performed with Armenia’s T. Altunyan State Song and Dance Ensemble. Yet her time there was brief, for her heart remained in Artsakh—in Berdzor, her true home.
We learned her story during our meeting, woven through fragments of conversation. Firuza, it turned out, already knew of our work, having followed our efforts on social media. She had reached out, eager to support displaced elders from Artsakh—to offer them solace and joy through her art.
The meeting was arranged by Gayane Balayan, a steadfast ally of our Elderly Program and Firuza’s longtime friend from Berdzor. We had planned a simple discussion to organize a concert for our beneficiaries. But what began as a logistical meeting soon became something far more profound.
Unexpectedly, three of our beneficiaries joined us. Then came another visitor—a woman from Artsakh who had attended our psychological support sessions in Stepanakert. She had come just to see us. On the spur of the moment, we set up a tea table in the meeting hall, its serendipitous acoustics filling the space with warmth.
As we sipped tea, Firuza answered questions with grace, her voice rising now and then in song. That voice—clear, radiant, as untamed and majestic as the mountains of her homeland—filled every corner of the room. For a moment, we were transported back, our thoughts drifting to those now-distant shores of home.
Firuza is an artist in the truest sense. Beyond her musical gift, she is also a potter. Before the day ended, we resolved to bring our beneficiaries to her studio one day, to witness another facet of her creativity.
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