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We are now accepting
applications for the 2013-2014 academic year. The
deadline for the submittal of applications is June 30, 2013.
(Click the above thumbnail to see the most recent article
about the 2011-2012 scholarship)
(Click the above thumbnail to see the most recent article
about the 2011-2012 scholarship)
The John
M. Azarian Memorial Armenian Youth Scholarship Fund was
formed in 1976 following the untimely death of John M.
Azarian, Sr., beloved husband and father. Mr. Azarian
was the son of Armenian immigrants and worked hard his
entire life to serve the Armenian church and its community.
He worked unselfishly for St. Leon’s Armenian Church and was
instrumental in relocating the church from Paterson to Fair
Lawn, New Jersey. He was a founding father of the
church in its new location and served for many years as an
elected member of the Parish Council, specifically acting as
Treasurer, on Fund Raising projects, and capital programs.
Mr. Azarian
started from humble beginnings, growing up in Paterson, New
Jersey. He put himself through college, attending
Seton Hall University in West Orange, New Jersey, and
graduated with a degree in Accounting. He passed the
CPA exam and became a practicing accountant, initially with
Peat, Marwick and Mitchell and he later started his own
practice with an office in downtown Paterson, New Jersey,
which he later moved to Hawthorne, New Jersey. Besides
being devoted to the Armenian church, Mr. Azarian also
worked hard to help others and volunteered a considerable
amount of his time to various charities.
Since its
formation, the John M. Azarian Memorial Armenian Youth
Scholarship Fund has awarded over $500,000 in grants to
assist financially deserving Armenian students who might
otherwise not be able to complete their undergraduate
studies. It is our hope that someday those who we have
helped will be able to give something back to those who are
less fortunate.
Sadly,
Martin G. Azarian passed away suddenly on April 18, 2009.
Marty was a beloved husband to Geraldine, son to Barbara
Azarian McCullough, nephew to Ed Azarian and Joyce Avedisian
and brother to John, brother in law to Donna and Uncle to
Alyssa, Amanda, John III, and James.
Marty grew
up in Wyckoff, New Jersey and graduated from Ramapo High
School. He graduated in 2000 from St. Thomas Aquinas
College in Sparkhill, New York. He was an assistant
property manager for The Azarian Group, L.L.C.
and was a fireman with the Wyckoff Fire Department Company
#1 for over 20 years.
Marty was a
big fan of the Yankees, and enjoyed playing all sports.
He also enjoyed visiting firehouses and interacting with
other firemen, American History and travelling.
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Remembering Marty
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by Barbara Azarian-McCullough, Ph.D.
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My son
Marty passed away on April 18, 2009. As a family we
have been working on special ways of keeping Marty’s memory
alive and remembering Marty.
I always tried to instill in my sons to have goals and to
work to attain those goals. Marty always had 3 goals
in life that he worked to achieve – to graduate college, get
married and become a fireman. And I am so proud of
Marty for having worked so hard and attaining his goals.
Marty was not physically able to pass the fireman’s test but
because he worked so hard and was so dedicated the firemen
of Company 1 in Wyckoff made him an Honorary Fireman.
Marty wasn’t allowed to go to fires, for liability reasons,
but they put Marty in charge of staying at the fire house
and directing firemen to fires. Marty took this job
very seriously and derived satisfaction from this important
role. Marty also helped with Fire Prevention Week at
the firehouse.
Marty graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas College in 2000 with
a Bachelors of Arts degree. It was difficult, at
times, for Marty to complete his courses but he persevered
and did graduate. Dr. Margaret Fitzpatrick, President
of St. Thomas
Aquinas College (STAC
) and a wonderful personal friend personally spent time with
Marty helping him complete his courses. Marty was so
happy when he graduated!
Chronologically, last but certainly not least, was Marty
getting married. Marty was so in love with his wife Gigi and even in his later days when his health was failing
he only wanted to be with Gigi. Gigi was a wonderful,
loving and supportive wife who endured some difficult times
with Marty near the end.
In Marty’s memory John and I have been working on some
special things. First is a new, outside patio behind
Fire Company 1 in Wyckoff, which will be dedicated to Marty.
We have been working closely with the Fire Department on
developing the plans for the area. We will be donating
the money to build this patio area and it will have a bronze
plaque, with Marty’s likeness and name. We anticipate
this will be completed by this Fall (see plan below).
If you would like to be invited to the ribbon cutting in
Marty’s memory please let me know.
The second project we are working on in Marty’s name is a
memorial scholarship at St. Thomas Aquinas College. We
hope to have this in place for the Fall Semester.
When Marty passed away the Firemen approached us and asked
if they could do a special “Firemen’s Service” in Marty’s
memory. We had no idea what that entailed but of
course we were honored and said yes. The special
Firemen’s Service began the evening of Marty’s viewing when
at least 30 firemen, in dress uniform, came to the service.
That was so touching, but only the beginning. The next
morning the firemen arrived with no less than 7 fire trucks
(thank God there wasn’t a fire in Wyckoff!) filled with
firemen in dress uniforms and placed Marty on the first
truck. We then proceeded from the Funeral Home to St.
Leon Armenian Church in Fair Lawn, via back roads. As
we passed people on the road they didn’t know if we were a
parade or going to a fire! When the church service
was over we had about 70 cars (in addition to the 7 fire
trucks) which then proceeded to the Cemetery in Wyckoff.
On the way the fire trucks went back to the fire house.
We didn’t know what was planned or what to expect.
They stopped in front of the fire house garage and slowly
opened the garage doors. The garages were, of course,
empty since the trucks were in our procession, and sitting
there in the empty garage was Marty’s Fireman’s uniform
propped up. It was incredibly touching! The
firemen then came to the cemetery and many ultimately came
to the repass lunch. This special “Firemen’s Service”
truly was special!
The Dedication of the Marty Azarian Memorial
Patio at Company # 1
Marty had three dreams
during his short life. First was to become a fireman,
something he had dreamed about since he was about five.
He accomplished this by being a very important part of
Company #1 in Wyckoff, NJ. Second was to graduate college. He did
this in 2000 when he graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas
College in Sparkhill, New York. And third was to get married. He did this when he
married Geraldine.
We wanted to honor
Marty’s memory and his devotion to the firehouse so we
donated the cost to erect a new patio behind Company #1,
which was dedicated on October 16, 2010.
The Fire Chief
pointed out that all 25 members were in attendance for the
dedication, and that NEVER HAPPENS. All were there because
they had fond and special memories of Marty and wanted to
share them with his family and honor Marty’s memory.
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