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The roots of the
Sahag Mesrob Armenian School were spreading long before that first spade
touched the earth to pave the way for building St. James. In researching
the past history of the school, we find that in 1923, a devoted
Armenian mother and teacher, Mrs. Gulenia A. Nazar, organized her first
Armenian School somewhere in the Watertown area. Wife of the editor of
the Baikar, and mother of four children, Digin Nazar, as she was
popularly known, somehow found time to devote several afternoons a week
to conducting the Armenian School by herself. Teaching in a one-room
classroom, she alone instructed all abilities, ages, and grades in
language, literature, history and music. Students remained until they had
learned all they could and then they left the school. Graduation did not
occur until the Church acquired the Armenian School. "Her work was the
guiding force of her life," wrote her daughter. "Teaching was her life
and she was totally devoted to it".
The school
operated under difficult circumstances during the depression years.
Digin Nazar charged a nominal fee for the school year, but if the
parents could not pay it, she did not discharge the student. That,
of course, would have defeated the prime purpose of the school.
The Armenian
School was rarely held in the same location two years in a row. A series
of empty stores, usually poorly heated in the winter and in all parts of
Watertown, were rented on a monthly basis. Some popular sites were: the
East Watertown Fire Station, Dexter Hall, on the corner of Dexter and
Nichols Avenue, and in Dr. Apelian's house, on the corner of Dexter
Avenue and Mt. Auburn Street. One year, Digin Nazar coerced the town
officials into letting her use the classrooms of the Hosmer School after
regular school hours. Taking into consideration the cost of the rentals,
desks and chairs, writing materials, textbooks and the constant moving
expense, Digin Nazar indoubtedly paid from her own pocket to keep the school
functioning. Some years she had an assistant, whose salary - meager as it
was - became an added financial burden.
To counteract the
influence of Protestant missionaries that had Sunday Schools for
Armenian children, Digin Nazar began to hold classes on Sunday mornings
as well, concentrating on Armenian church history. Not only did she try
to teach the students reading and writing but also "kaghakavaroutioun
and henazantoutioun" (politeness and obedience).
In 1933 when the
St. James Armenian Church became a reality, the Parish Council, led by
Nishan Barsamian, accepted Sahag Mesrob as its Armenian School. Classes
were held at the ADL Club until 1947, when the Parish House, (no longer
standing) on the corner of Winsor Avenue and Mt. Auburn Streets was
acquired. In 1967 the Sahag Mesrob Armenian School found its
current home in the Cultural and Youth Center.
The first
graduating exercises were held in 1936. Criteria for graduation was not
age, but rather knowledge and evidence of excellence. In those
depression years, many children were forced to leave public school at
the age of 16 to go to work and were unable to attend Armenian classes
in the afternoon. Thus, the concept of graduating students around the
age of 16 developed.
Digin Nazar
directed and taught the Armenian School until her retirement in 1949. At
that time, St. James gave a banquet in her honor in the St. James Church
Hall, celebrating her 50 years of teaching.
The first
graduates of the school formed an alumni association known as the Sahag Mesrob Junior
League, which later became the Sahag Mesrob Alumni Association. Its
primary purpose was to assist the alma mater financially. This
organization, the only one of its kind in the United States, flourished
into the 1940's, when, upon the directive of the Diocese to have a
single youth organization in each parish, it merged with the ACYOA.
Several people
have been instrumental in building the school. Many Armenian spirited
men and women have spent years performing the small, endless details, as
well as the large fund-raising responsibilities to advance Sahag Mesrob
Armenian School. It would be impossible to list the names of those
who should be credited and applauded for a job well-done. Not all these
people have been parishioners of St. James. Many have been associated
with other churches, even other faiths, and other nationalities. But
they all had one thing in common - the desire to have their children
learn something about their Armenian heritage, even if they came away
only with "feeling Armenian".
The tradition of our school are
strong and alive, but our goal is not to rest upon the proud tradition set
by our predecessors, but rather to increase our efforts to improve that
tradition and to involve our children in doing so. We applaud the
parents who send their children to Armenian School to keep the Armenian
language alive. The strong involvement of the faculty, parents, and
student body in all school-related undertakings is enthusiastic. We are
confident that the Sahag Mesrob Armenian School will continue to
preserve our ancestral heritage for the Armenian children of tomorrow
and the tomorrow of our beloved St. James Armenian Church.
Please contact us if you would like to learn more
about the Sahag Mesrob Armenian School.
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