Kamp Armen Armenian orphanage to be rebuilt in Turkey

PanARMENIAN.Net - An Armenian orphanage, publicly known as “Kamp Armen,” in Istanbul’s Tuzla district, which was demolished on April 8 to prepare for the construction of a new building, will be rebuilt in October, Hurriyet Daily News reports.

A dormitory where 100 young people could stay, cultural center, foyer, library, auditorium and multi-purpose halls will be built on the land belonging to the Gedikpaşa Armenian Protestant Church and School Foundation. Zaven Khanjian, the head of the Armenian Missionary Association of America, his wife Sona Khanjian and students from the Gedikpaşa Armenian Protestant Church and School Foundation recently visited the area.

“This land has always been a source of fertility to us. I want it to be a beautiful place which will serve the youth and integrate them into society after educating them in a cultural and social sense,” said Zaven Khanjian.

The project has been prepared as a social facility suitable for the information age, said Gedikpaşa Church Pastor Krikor Ağabaloğlu, adding that the reconstruction of Kamp Armen brought Armenian communities together.

The orphanage was built in 1962 by the Gedikpaşa Armenian Protestant Church, as a former building on the site could not host the increasing number of Armenian students arriving from various parts of Turkey.