About Us
We collect in the USA and distribute in Armenia.
Armenian Lighthouse Charitable Foundation (previously known as Paros “Lighthouse” Armenian Charitable Foundation USA), was established in 2009 as a California non-profit Public Benefit Corporation. Lighthouse Foundation was established in 2006 in Yerevan, Armenia. The idea of “lighthouse” established in 1999 by friends and supporters of the Ghazarian Foundation, grew out of their concerns for Armenian women and children and the integrity of the Armenian family. The stark reality is that Armenian women are struggling to adapt to a changing world and experiencing great difficulties maintaining financial and familial stability. For Armenian women with little to no economic financial means, rearing children can be a very difficult task. These difficulties are exacerbated in the context of a violent and/or broken home, where negligence or abandonment of children often remain the only short term solution for Armenian mothers. The number of orphans in Armenia has been growing over the years, and it is no secret that orphanages are ill equipped to meet the demands and every day basic needs of the growing number of orphans. As painful as that may be to those of us in the Diaspora to hear, imagine how painful the lives of these Armenian women and children must be who have to survive such difficulties.
Out of a desire and commitment to do all that they can to address the growing fragility of the Armenian family, Mrs. Seta Ghazarian, Founder of ALCF and chairperson of the Ghazarian Foundation since 1999, and Mrs. Tahlene Gourdikian, Vice Chairman of the ALCF, and a very active member joined forces to develop programs for financially impoverished mothers in Armenia with the long-term goal of helping maintain the traditional Armenian family. The mission of ALCF is to assist married and abandoned women in Armenia who are experiencing great difficulties in maintaining the stability of their children’s lives.
We observed that while several Armenian organizations met the needs of poor children, very few addressed-let alone attempted to assist-the mothers of those children. Building on the premise that a financially and emotionally strong Armenian woman can stand on her own two feet and help maintain the stability of her family, ALCF has directly served the financial and emotional needs of Armenian mothers.
ALCF, therefore, aims to strengthen women and families for a stronger Armenia. ALCF already serves a lot of families in Armenia by providing necessary educational, financial and emotional support. With your support, ALCF also plans to provide vocational training and child rearing counseling to Armenian mothers in distress, so that they in turn opt not to enroll their children in orphanages.
With limited resources, ALCF has already made a significant impact in Armenia. It is directly responsible for keeping a lot of children in their homes and out of orphanages. Imagine all the greater good that can be accomplished with your support. ALCF cannot accomplish the goals of the organization and help the children of Armenia without your assistance.
We request that you make either a one time donation or commit to the monthly support of an Armenian woman and her children. A monthly donation as small as $50.00 can mean the difference between abandonment of a child or a mother receiving vocational training and being able to keep her children.
We thank you in advance for your support.