A Journey of Resilience

When we bought our house in Shushi in 2019, we thought we had made our dreams come true. Little did we know how fragile dreams could be. We could never have imagined that we would lose our home one day and that our hopes would crumble.

The war broke out in 2020, and constant bombing and massive killings dismantled our world. We fled to Armenia with my two children for several months while my husband, who served in the army, stayed in Artsakh. We returned to Stepanakert once hostilities temporarily ceased.

After returning, nothing was the same; it felt as though a black cloud filled with sorrow was about to rain. This fragile peace didn’t last, and in 2022, we found ourselves trapped in a total blockade imposed by Azerbaijan aimed at starving the entire surviving population of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh).

One year later, in September 2023, there was a military incursion, followed by a ruthless war that forced the government to evacuate the entire population.

Exodus…

I remember how our grandparents told us horrific stories of the Armenian Genocide of 1915 and the exodus; it felt the same, only the horses, after 100 years, were replaced by cars.

Oh my God, it was incredibly hard for us, our children, our families, and all our brothers and sisters. We realized that we were losing a special bond with our motherland.

It was a reluctant departure, a forced return to Armenia with the sole aim of saving our children.

In Armenia, we settled in despite everything. We rented a small house in one of the villages of the Ararat region. Although the housing conditions were not what we had wished for, we did not lose hope of building a new life.

There were no jobs or prospects upon arrival, and we struggled to make ends meet.

Then, one day, we learned about the Armenian Fund for Sustainable Development’s women’s empowerment program and applied for support. I sent all the necessary documentation, and they visited us.

About a month later, they invited us to Yerevan, and on Funding Commission Day, my husband and I were interviewed about the feasibility of our chicken breeding proposal.

A few days later, the Fund called and invited me to sign the purchase contract for chicken breeding activities. Things improved from then on. Now, we have almost 400 chickens and one incubator, and we sell eggs and chicken meat.

Additionally, the AF4SD also approved my request for professional hairdressing training. After two months of intensive training, I received my certificate and now work in a beauty salon. Of course, there is room for improvement, and I am sure I will master the art of hair dyeing, cutting, and coloring. Many people are surprised when I mention that I studied at Artsakh State University and hold a master’s degree in journalism, yet I have always dreamed of being a hairdresser.

I’ve loved hairdressing since I was little; I always wanted to learn. I am still young, and at 33, I have gained a new profession. I know that everything will improve, and I will continue to enhance my skills, as I have yearned for this for too long.

I know that my story will also be read by people who have never known where Artsakh was, what it is to be in a war, or to lose everything and still have the strength to start a new life.

You know, the daily minor problems do not matter when you survive the war and blockade.

What’s important is to keep the memory and convey a message that it is utterly wrong and unfair to chase people from their homeland and transform peacefully living people into 150,000 refugees.

We lost something precious: a land where I was born and where my mother, grandfather, and ancestors lived for generations, centuries, and even millennia. It is our native land, where we left our churches and gravestones.

It is horrifying to think about this, but I firmly believe we will return to our homeland one day. In the meantime, we must be strong and keep together, stay alive, and thrive.

If you want to support Tatevik, her children, or other beneficiaries of the “Women Empowerment Program,” please make a direct donation on our website or contact us to learn how you can help empower refugee women and their families.

If you want to support Tatevik, her children, or other beneficiaries of the “Women Empowerment Program”, make a direct donation on our website or contact us to learn how you can help empower refugee women and their families.

The “Refugee Women Empowerment in Armenia 2024” project is supported by the Australian Government and implemented by the Armenian Fund for Sustainable Development (www.af4sd.org ) .

The Arev Society (www.arevsociety.org) provides management support to the “Vulnerable Women Empowerment in Armenia “program.