Category Archives: Genocide

THE JOURNEY CONTINUES…

Posted on May 30, 2023 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

Although I’m far from the finish line with my historical fiction about the Armenians in Troy, NY who founded the only Protestant Armenian church in upstate NY, I take a semi-break sometimes to do research on best practices for querying … Continue reading →

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Ha’/ee yern – I AM ARMENIAN

Posted on April 30, 2020 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

A generation before the Holocaust, there was the Armenian genocide. Never heard of it? You’re not alone. According to a display at the Armenian Museum in Watertown, MA, Hitler, discussing his plans to annihilate Poles and Jews, soothed his inner … Continue reading →

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THE THIRTY-YEAR GENOCIDE

Posted on March 26, 2020 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

I feel like I just struck gold in the research for my historical fiction! I have amassed so many articles and books and photos and interviews. Still, I felt my mental picture of the time frame when Armenians were subjected … Continue reading →

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BIRTH OF AN ARMENIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY

Posted on March 2, 2020 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

I grew up in a community of Armenians. Every block within a 4-5 block diameter contained multiple Armenian families, and at the center of it was the church. The groundbreaking for the first church was celebrated by the entire congregation. … Continue reading →

Posted in Armenians, Church, Community, Genocide, Grief and Loss, Immigrants, Resilience | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

ARMENIAN HISTORY AND FOOD

Posted on January 13, 2020 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

I don’t usually do book reviews on this site. However, in my research for my eventual historical fiction about Armenians and their immigration to America during and following the 1915 genocide in Turkey, I came across a marvelous book that … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogs, Book Reviews, Books, Cookbooks, family, Genocide, Immigrants, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

ARMENIA 100+ YEARS AGO

Posted on November 18, 2019 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

PA-REV-NER! GREETINGS! It’s a literary gift of gold! Thanks to my friend Roger, I learned of this resource for understanding life in Armenia prior to the 1915 genocide. I have only just begun my study of what it offers. The … Continue reading →

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WRITING THIS AND THAT

Posted on October 14, 2019 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

What a whirlwind week this has been! I can’t remember when I’ve been more enthusiastic about writing done and writing planned! In the first six days post release, the copies have flown off my shelf and out of Amazon and … Continue reading →

Posted in Armenians, Book Reviews, Book Sales, Books, Contests, family, Genocide, historical fiction, Immigrants, The Eyes Have It | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

THE ARMENIAN LEGION

Posted on July 27, 2019 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

One of the lesser-known stories about the experience of Armenians during World War I, the period of the most aggressive extermination attempts by the Turks, was the formation of The Armenian Legion: 1916-1920. One of the women I interviewed spoke … Continue reading →

Posted in Armenians, Genocide, History, WAR! | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

THE ARMENIAN TAPESTRY

Posted on July 12, 2019 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

A-no’o-nus Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse. Hal’/lee a-me-ree-ga-tsee yem. Hos yem. My name is Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse. I am Armenian American. I am here. It has been a while since I have posted about my Armenian book project. Happily, that is because … Continue reading →

Posted in Armenians, family, Genocide, Grief and Loss, Immigrants, Resilience, Strength, survival | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

IN THE BEGINNING…

Posted on May 18, 2019 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

My grandfather (medz ha’/eer) and grandmother (medz ma’/eer) immigrated from Kharpert (also known as Harpoot) in Armenia. Don’t try to find Kharpert on a map of Armenia–it’s no longer there. Kharpert was one of the casualties of the Armenian genocide, … Continue reading →

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