GLENDALE, CA – The Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region (ANCA-WR) expressed its appreciation to the Khanjian family for establishing an endowment fund in memory of Kourken Khanjian to support participants in the ANCA Leo Sarkisian Internship Program.

Born in 1907, Kourken Khanjian lived through the Van resistance and forced retreat to Caucasus Armenia. From there, Khanjian moved to Persia and then Lebanon before coming to Los Angeles in the 1980s. A true activist, Khanjian regularly attended ANC functions and supported the growth of the community – including the establishment of Ferrahian High School. In 2001, Khanjian co-accepted the Burbank city’s April 24th Armenian Genocide proclamation from Mayor Bill Wiggins on behalf of the community.

The Kourken Khanjian ANCA-WR Internship Endowment Fund will help sponsor qualified Armenian college students from the Western Region to join their peers in the nation’s capital to partake in an intensive summer internship in the nation’s capitol. The program is designed to provide students with the tools necessary to effectively advance the issues of concern to the community on federal, state, and local levels. This past summer the ANCA-WR sent five students to D.C. to participate in the Leo Sarkisian Summer Internship Program. “We thank the Khanjian family for its generous contribution,” remarked ANCA-WR Board Member Armen Martin. “The optimistic outlook that was the hallmark of Khanjian’s activism will continue through the succeeding generations of Armenian American leaders and community advocates produced by this internship program.”

The ANCA is the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots political organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian-American community on a broad range of issues.

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