ATP News

PRESS RELEASE
January 30, 2008

Armenian Community Exceeds Challenge Issued
to ATP by Harry T. Mangurian, Jr. Foundation

WATERTOWN, MA--Armenia Tree Project (ATP) is proud to announce that its supporters exceeded the challenge issued by the Harry T. Mangurian, Jr. Foundation to raise $500,000 between September 15 and December 31, 2007. Mr. Mangurian agreed to contribute $500,000 if ATP could raise that amount, and more than 2,000 new and existing donors came forward and donated nearly $850,000 to ATP in response.

“Our thanks go out to the thousands of old friends and new supporters who demonstrated their belief in our work with a generous gift this Fall,” emphasized Executive Director Jeff Masarjian. “Our programs stir people’s passions and energy, and we were thrilled that the challenge offered by Harry T. Mangurian, Jr. enabled ATP to begin 2008 on such a strong footing in preparation for its most ambitious year ever.”

“Meeting the challenge is not an endpoint, but rather, it positions us to begin the next phase. This support will allow us to execute plans to greatly increase the number of families participating in our backyard nursery program--providing a much needed source of income for rural families in Armenia--and expand our environmental education programs in 2008,” added Masarjian.

A second generation Armenian-American, Harry T. Mangurian, Jr. became familiar with ATP only recently and in a very short period of time began supporting the organization’s effort to expand the donor base. He helped to create a unique mail appeal in 2007 with photographs of ATP’s work and a 20 dram Armenian coin--symbolizing ATP’s program to purchase tree seedlings grown by families in the Getik River Valley. A record number of new donors responded to that appeal at an introductory level, followed by the strong response this Fall to “Harry’s Challenge.”

“In addition to this great achievement, ATP planted 550,000 trees at 174 sites throughout Armenia in 2007, exceeding our pledge to the Billion Tree Campaign launched by the United Nations Environment Program and bringing the total number of trees planted and restored by ATP since 1994 to over two million,” noted Masarjian. “We also began planting the Hrant Dink Memorial Forest near our Mirak Family Reforestation Nursery in northern Armenia, and our goal is to plant the remaining trees and dedicate the site in 2008. And our Community Tree Planting Program continued planting fruit and decorative trees in rural villages throughout Armenia.”

“Finally, we used our environmental education curriculum with more than 500 university and grade school students over the past year in programs at the Michael and Virginia Ohanian Education Center and in the communities where we plant trees, in order to promote the concept of stewardship and sustainability among the next generation of Armenian leaders,” concluded Masarjian. “The success of Mr. Mangurian’s challenge is so vitally important because we need to reverse the tide of deforestation, and your support has helped us meet the challenge and secure a sustainable Armenia for the future.”

Since 1994, ATP has planted and restored more than 2,000,000 trees and created hundreds of jobs for impoverished Armenians in tree-regeneration programs. The organization’s three tiered initiatives are tree planting, community development to reduce poverty and promote self-sufficiency, and environmental education to protect Armenia’s precious natural resources.

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