As April marks Armenian History Month in LA County, FOX 11 is highlighting an organization and a man who is making a difference in people's lives.

The publication spoke with Dr. Noubar Afeyan, who is the co-founder and chairman of Moderna and founder-CEO of Flagship Pioneering.

He is also the co-founder of FAST (Foundation for Armenian Science and Technology). Dr. Afeyan traveled to Los Angeles to serve as the keynote speaker for the Advance Armenia Gala, FAST’s inaugural fundraising gala.

FAST is working to transform Armenia from a largely technology-consuming nation to a technology-creating nation. Dr. Afeyan is deeply involved in many philanthropic efforts — many of which involve Armenia. Over the years, he has received many awards for his entrepreneurial and philanthropic contributions, including helping with the formation of 76 healthcare and life sciences companies.

All of these companies have been at the interface between biology, technology science and chemistry. One of the companies, of course, is Moderna, which is now famous for having created the COVID-19 vaccine.

Dr. Afeyan was born in Beirut, Lebanon to Armenian parents. He lived there until the civil war in 1975. As a teenager, he and his family escaped to Montreal, Canada as political refugees.

He attended McGill University, majored in chemical engineering and went on to graduate from MIT. And at 24, he started his own company.