![]() He received letters of commendation from Presidents Reagan, Bush and Clinton. Najarian with the rank of colonel in the Armenian Army.Īmong the numerous awards he received are the Vachagan Humanitarian Medal from Artsakh, the Soviet Medal of Honor, the Nelle Reagan Award, the Fridtjof Nansen Award from the Russian International Humanitarian Organization, the Ellis Island Medal of Freedom and Presidential Medal of Honors from Artsakh presidents Arkady Ghukasyan and Bako Sahakyan and Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan. Because of his sacrifice and heroic acts, Defense Minister Vasken Sarkissian honored Dr. When not in Armenia and Artsakh he was always sending more medical supplies and assistance. Najarian renovated a 30-bed trauma center in Stepanakert. The Najarians spent 8 years making a once rundown building into a modern and well-equipped military hospital. Najarian, along with Medical Outreach, renovated 11 floors of the Military Hospital in Yerevan. It was there that he would perform surgeries by candlelight in trenches and in bombed out basements, under the shelling of bombs and bullets.Īfter the war, Dr. Najarian had to leave his private medical practice in Los Angeles so he could spend more time in Artsakh attending to the troops. Najarian and his friends in Los Angeles purchased and delivered Alyenko radio systems to the Army which was crucial in turning the tide to victory for the Armenian and Artsakh forces.ĭr. The radio systems the soldiers used were very heavy, obsolete, and unable to be used properly to direct troops. In those 2 areas, the Najarians played the major role,” In 1991, during the fierce fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan, then Minister of Defense Serge Sarkissian stated that during the war “our soldiers wanted 2 things: medical care and a combat communication system. ![]() That same year, he sent millions of dollars of medical supplies, filling over 50 containers to Yerevan. Najarian with the help of the Armenian community, arranged for 120 children, who had lost limbs in the earthquake, to obtain necessary surgical treatment and prosthetics in prominent Los Angeles hospitals. He established a humanitarian organization, Medical Outreach for Armenians, to facilitate his charitable projects.ĭr. This was the first time since the start of the Cold War that a US military plane was permitted to land in the Soviet Union. Najarian was asked to be on the first US State Department emergency medical response team to assess the needs. When the 1988 earthquake rocked Armenia, Dr. Najarian to create the first aspirin tablet manufacturing facility in Yerevan. The shortage of medicine in Armenian compelled Dr. Najarian helped to develop modern eye care centers in Yerevan. In addition to bringing the valuable arthroscopic surgical equipment, he brought Armenian orthopedic surgeons to the United States to strengthen their training.Įven beyond orthopedics, Dr. He was the first doctor in the entire Soviet Union to perform arthroscopic surgery. He broke down political barriers in order to bring Armenia up to modern medical standards. Armenia’s health care system at the time was that of a third world country. His first visit to Soviet Armenia in 1984 sparked a burning passion to help his people. He started his private orthopedic practice in Glendale where he pioneered the first weekly successful health program on Armenian television. In 1980, the family moved to California to be closer to his extended family and the flourishing Armenian community. In the 20 years he spent in Cleveland, he served the community by volunteering as the sports team physician for Hawken School and the West Geauga School District. Sinai Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, where he settled down and raised four children: Ara, Armen, Raffi, and Maro. He completed his orthopedic training at Mt. In 1958, while in Chicago, he married Mary Kevorkian, a registered nurse and AUB graduate. After an internship in New Jersey, he went to Chicago, where he trained under the famous Dr. He graduated from medical school in 1957, and came to the United States to continue his medical training. In his spare time, he worked as a lifeguard on the Mediterranean beach and was a star athlete and national rowing champion. After attending the Armenian Evangelical High School, he graduated from the American University of Beirut (AUB) and received a scholarship to enter the AUB Medical School. At an early age, the family moved to Beirut, Lebanon. They had five children: Sirvart, Ardashes, Vartkes, Vasken and Vrej. Vartkes Najarian was born Apin Kessab, Syria to Hagop, an evangelical minister, and Rebecca. ![]() Vartkes Najarian passed away peacefully at his home in Glendale, CA, surrounded by his wife, children, their spouses, grandchildren and great-grandchild.
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