Tag Archives: Armenians

RANDOM CONNECTIONS…NOT SO RANDOM

Posted on March 1, 2022 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

“I think my great grandfather was the founder of your church.” I received this message after posting a story about my childhood church on this blog. It wasn’t possible, I was certain. I had studied the original members and the … Continue reading →

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THE MIRACLE PHOTO

Posted on April 5, 2021 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

For the last three years I’ve been involved with the process of closing and selling the church where I grew up. It was a sad time, but also a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with old friends, form new friendships, and … Continue reading →

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ARMENIAN DANCES: THE MAKING OF A HISTORICAL NOVEL

Posted on February 6, 2021 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

Two years ago, I posted about a plan to write a history of the Armenian church where I spent much of my childhood through young adulthood. I wrote about my earliest research and its impact on me in my 2/4/19 … Continue reading →

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FAREWELL TO “THE NINTH STREET CHURCH”

Posted on October 2, 2020 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

Participants in the service also received a recorded message from Rev. Joanne Gulezian-Hartunian, who served the church during much of the 1990’s. Her message was You Are The Church. She shared memories of church dinners and Sunday School activities and … Continue reading →

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BIRTH OF AN ARMENIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY

Posted on May 13, 2020 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

Beginning in the late nineteenth century and continuing into the first three decades of the twentieth century, a community of Protestant Armenians left the horrific persecutions of Armenian Christians in Turkey and arrived and thrived in the city of Troy, … 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 →

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ARMENIAN FAIRYTALES

Posted on December 20, 2019 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

Shnor-ha-vor (soorp) dzu-noont!  Merry Christmas! During a visit with one of the Armenian women who was kind enough to let me interview her for my historical fiction, she shared a delightful find with me (actually, a few delightful finds, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Armenians, Blogs, Books, Fairy Tales, family, historical fiction, Immigrants, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

HOW LONG IS TOO LONG FOR HISTORICAL FICTION?

Posted on December 13, 2019 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

This stained glass window photo is from the church I attended as a child and remained a member until it closed in 2011. Revisiting the church a little over a year ago started me on this journey–to write about the … Continue reading →

Posted in Armenians, Books, Church, Fiction, historical fiction, Immigrants, research, survival, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

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

HERE COMES THE (CHILD) BRIDE …

Posted on August 27, 2019 by Dawn Essegian Lajeunesse

Arranged marriages were common among 19th and early 20th century Armenians. Many marriages were delayed for years or never happened because of the massacres and genocide at the hands of the Ottoman Turks. Continue reading →

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