Peabody Commemorates Genocide, Remembers Mayor Torigian

By Ani Babaian

On Fri., April 25 at 10 a.m., in front of the Peabody City Hall, a flag-raising ceremony was held for the 99^th commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, led by Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt.

Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt raising the flag (Photos by Darin Swimm) — Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt raising the flag (Photo by Darin Swimm)

After the Armenian and American National Anthems, the ceremony continued inside. Mayor Bettencourt presented his opening remarks, stating, “The Armenian Genocide Ceremony has been held in Peabody for the past 26 years. I remember one day during my senior year at Peabody High School, Mayor Peter Torigian came and spoke to my history class. It was the first time I had heard about the Armenian Genocide. His stories of family tragedy and incredible courage in the face of such evil were so moving, and he spoke with such passion and emotion. It left a mark on me.”

Bettencourtalso mentioned the terrorist acts at the Boston Marathon last year, and said we can pay tribute to those lives, remember, and speak about such events, and educate the future generations. Because of this ceremony, he added, we learn about genocide and human violence.

Father Vasken A. Kouzouianof Holy Trinity Church in Cambridge, Mass., Rev. Father Stephan Baljianof St. Stephen’s Church in Watertown, and Deacon Avedis Garavanian, of North Andover’s St. Gregory Armenian Apostolic Church held a requiem service to memorialize the victims of the Armenian Genocide.

Congressman John Tierney gave his greetings, and stated, “The Armenian Genocide was the premeditated, deliberate,

(L-R) Jackie Torigian, Congressman John Tierney, and Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt (Photos by Darin Swimm) — (L-R) Jackie Torigian, Congressman John Tierney, and Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt (Photo by Darin Swimm)

systematic murder of 1.5 million innocent people, which created fear and intimidation with the intent to destroy generations of Armenian families. This was not a war, but an armed government. This was not an overblown incident; this was a brutal crime against humanity. These events should not be forgotten, but they were not captured on film, cell phones, or shown over the internet by news media for the entire world to see. Division and hatred can only lead to more division and hatred, as the genocides proved. Although the atrocities of the past cannot be erased, we must take the opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to the achievement of liberty and peace worldwide.”

Mayor Bettencourt then invited the event’s main speaker, Patrice Tierney. She shared her feelings about Armenian Genocide: “This is a personal issue to me and my family, as you have learned over the years, although I was not raised with any knowledge of ancestors lost or that the horrific events of 1915 took place. Maybe my grandfather remained silent until he died because, according to my aunt who attended this commemoration with me two years ago, there were never any discussions as to what happened to my grandfather or his parents. Never would she ask about the scars on his back. My aunt is 87 years old, and until accompanying me here 2 years ago, had not known much about the genocide and she was very moved by what she heard.”

Congressman John Tierney (Photo by Darin Swimm)

Tierney related how she received a Christmas card from her father’s first cousin, George Yeremian, who lives in Newburyport. Her grandfather, it turned out, had dropped the Y from his name. “Why? I will never know. Again, a fact that I never knew about but had always wondered—why there were Yeremians buried in a Medford cemetery, but our family grave did not have the Y on the name. Or that a second cousin existed and lived close by, except for his introductory Christmas card.”

She mentioned that when she married her husband, Congressman John Tierney, and was introduced to the Torigian family, she learned of the horrific events that took place in Armenia.

“My gratitude is to Mayor Peter Torigian who thoughtfully included me in his annual commemoration. My knowledge of the horror was enhanced over the last 17 years, not by members of my own family, but by Mayor Torigian’s dedication to a genocide that was not in the history books for me to learn about as a child.”

“Several years ago, at this event, a woman in attendance approached me with a type-written introduction of her husband, Sarkis Saryan, who was 86 at the time and had been a 4-year-old witness to the events of 1915,” Tierney said. “He escaped after several attempts…. For seven and a half decades, he remained silent until his wife asked him to break the silence and tell his story in his own words. His story is very compelling. One thing that Sarkis and Mayor Torigian both continued to do was to keep a loaf of bread in their freezers as their mother’s had done, because their mothers’ memories of hunger could not be forgotten: Bread was always at a premium when there was no wheat or flour available to them for long periods of time.”

She ended, “I know that in remembering the Armenian Genocide we are also mindful of what’s happening in the world today. The violence that is happening in South Sudan, and elsewhere around the globe… There must be hope for peaceful and just resolutions, although the atrocities of the past cannot be erased.”

Mayor Bettencourt read the Proclamation and gave it to the Late Mayor Torigian’s wife, Jackie Torigian. Bettencourt in his closing remarks said that Peabody will continue this tradition of commemoration and next year will have a special ceremony for the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide.

This year, Peabody’s high school students didn’t attend the commemoration. The mayor explained that the students were in the middle of school vacation, but that they would be present next year. After the ceremony, a light luncheon was served in the Wiggin Auditorium sponsored by City Hall and the Mardiros family.