Historic Armenian American Museum Breaks Ground
Emmy Award-Nominated KTLA 5 News Reporter Ellina Abovian
Will Host the Groundbreaking Ceremony in Glendale
By Vic Gerami
The historic groundbreaking ceremony of the Armenian American Museum is held today, Sunday, July 11, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The event is open to the public. All are invited to join the event by attending in-person or watching the live international broadcast via television, social media, and streaming channels.
The ceremony will be held outdoors at the museum’s future site in Central Park at 151 East Colorado Street, Glendale, CA 91205. Limited seating and refreshments will be provided for in-person attendees.
“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to invite the public to join us by attending in-person or watching the live broadcast,” stated Executive Chairman Berdj Karapetian. “We look forward to celebrating this major milestone with friends and supporters across the country and around the world.”
The groundbreaking ceremony will be broadcast live from Central Park to a worldwide audience. The live broadcast will be available on Facebook Live, YouTube Live, Horizon TV, and GTV6. The Live Show begins at 4:30 p.m. PDT.
Renowned KTLA 5 News Reporter Ellina Abovian will host the ceremony’s live program and show.
Ellina Abovian is an Emmy Award-nominated general assignment reporter for Los Angeles’ top-rated news station and morning show. Throughout her decade-long career, she has worked for CBS, NBC, and Fox affiliates throughout California. Abovian has dedicated a great deal of her work toward causes impacting the Armenian American community in Southern California.
“I am honored to join the Armenian American Museum as the host for their highly anticipated Groundbreaking Ceremony,” stated Abovian. “This event is a major milestone for the community where a landmark center is going to be built that will preserve, share, and promote Armenian culture for generations to come.”
The event will feature dignitaries and special guests, informative video segments on the cultural and educational center, live entertainment, and more. The event will conclude with a shovel ceremony to officially break ground for the museum’s future site as the project begins construction.
The Armenian American Museum was born in 2014 when the Armenian Genocide Centennial Committee Western USA officially adopted the museum as its landmark project to honor the memory of the 1.5 million martyrs who perished in the Armenian Genocide and to help build and define the next centennial of the community as a message of strength, perseverance, and hope for future generations.
The Armenian American Museum will rise to a two-level 50,820 square foot museum complex built on a one-level semi-subterranean parking garage. The first level will feature the grand lobby, auditorium, learning center, demonstration kitchen, gift shop, and administrative offices. The second level will be dedicated to the permanent and temporary exhibition galleries and the collection’s archives.
The cultural and educational center’s programming plans include producing and hosting powerful, immersive, and thought-provoking permanent and temporary exhibitions, leading meaningful dialogues and discussions through engaging public programs, providing educational programs for adults, youth, kids, and families, preserving Armenian heritage through the museum’s collections and archives, and serving as an iconic venue for memorable experiences, gatherings, and celebrations.
The mission of the Armenian American Museum and Cultural Center of California is to promote understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Armenian American experience. The vision is a cultural campus that enriches the community, educates the public on the Armenian American story, and empowers individuals to embrace cultural diversity and speak out against prejudice.
For more information, please visit ArmenianAmericanMuseum.org