Zartonok-89 NGO

About Us:

"Zartonk-89” is a non-governmental organization, which operates throughout the Republic of Armenia founded in 1989 and registered as an NGO with the Ministry of Justice in 1996. In 1988 after the earthquake, when the north part of Armenia was ruined and also Kharabagh war about 2400 children were parentless and the organization began to assist those children solving all the problems. Since 1989, Zartonk-89 has been actively engaged in the promotion of health, education, environment and social assistance for needy segments of the rural and urban children and teenagers in Armenia.  The active support and creativity of our partners and local volunteers have made it possible to extend its presence to other regions of Armenia; to date there are branches of our NGO all over the country.

Mission:

        "Zartonk -89" is a charitable organization that seeks  educational, social, health, environmental and charitable projects to support vulnerable children, adolescents and young adults with the mental, physical and spiritual development and life improvement. Our mission is to improve the lives and protect the rights of parentless and needy children, teenagers and youth in Armenia.  In order to achieve our mission, we implement various educational, social, and health projects focused on improving the mental, physical and social skills of children and teenagers and on building their self-esteem. The organization also assists rural and urban communities of the country. In addition, we have implemented several development projects that benefit entire communities. The age group of people that our organization wants to reach out to mainly consists of youth between the ages of 14-20 years old.

Objectives:

• To help the most vulnerable groups of children, adolescents and youth in regards to education, health and social aspects of accumulated problems.
• Implement educational, social, health, environmental protection, community development, as well as contributing to the strengthening of programs.
• To promote intercultural learning and dialogue, as well as the development of the culture of peace, tolerance and the spread of the world.
• Develop cooperation and networks between international and local organizations.
• To contribute to finding a solution to the problems faced by youth as well as legal awareness.
• To contribute to the establishment of democracy throughout the country and improve the people's living conditions.

• To develop and strengthen the capacity of the volunteer sector in Armenia.

The development of beneficiaries’ creative thinking:

Dear donors,
Thanks to your donations, we continue to support school-aged children living in rural communities. In remote areas of Armenia, people live in extreme poverty. Parents work hard all day long just to feed their children. It is very difficult for parents to raise the educational level of their children and control it.
All of this, of course, has a negative impact on our target group, because they have to help their parents, perform various physical activities, and miss school. To prevent all this and motivate them towards education, we provide psychosocial support to beneficiaries.
Our team regularly organizes courses on non-formal education methodology, which empowers, educates, and supports participants. The children have the opportunity to interact with each other, get involved in teamwork, as well as restore school curriculum and knowledge.
Dear Donors,
We would like to inform you that the names of all project participants were changed in order to protect their privacy.
This time the meeting consisted of individual and team sessions. During the individual work, participants were instructed to write ten things that they do very well individually, in daily life, and ten things that they do well or will do professionally in their work. This provides an excellent opportunity for participants to understand their personal and professional skills and abilities. At the end of the task, everyone presented their work. During the teamwork, the participants were assigned a creative task. They had to portray on the shield the dream community where they would like to live.
This work encourages our beneficiaries to understand the type of prosperous and strong community, and how it can be achieved. 
This is how our children are filled with enthusiasm and diligence. Remember that each of your gestures is very important to them. They keep smiling because of your support.

Grigor's support to refugee children

Dear donors, supporters,
Millions of people had to leave their homeland and look for a shelter in various countries because of the armed conflict in Syria.Those who survived the war are mostly children from Armenian families living in Syria.Our goal is to support those school-aged children and give them an opportunity to get integrated into Armenian society.It is not an easy process as we are dealing with children from a vulnerable group and we take on each step with huge responsibility.
This wonderful program of providing psychological and social support to Syrian-Armenian children continues.


Dear Donors,
We would like to inform you that the names of all project participants were changed in order to protect their privacy.


We present you Grigor, who is the second beneficiary of this project; his story and speech are addressed to all the donors:

Hello. I'm Grigor. I'm 10 and I'm studying in 4th grade. I showed great interest in participating in this program, as I think it is a great honor to provide support to Syrian refugee children. My participation in this program was great news as a friendship and brotherhood with refugee children were created.

In my free time, I love reading books, doing sports, singing. My dream is to become a famous singer and footballer so that the whole world will know me and be proud of me. I love my elder brother, who serves in the Armenian Army.

This is Grigor's story who is our second beneficiary and who is willing to voluntarily support refugee children.

Once again, thank you, dear donors, and remember that your every gesture is important for our team and our beneficiaries. We are confident that this program will be expanded day by day thanks to you.

Progress of our beneficiary in Georgia:

Dear donors and supporters,

Thanks to your donations we continue to support young experts of the new generation. The communities of Armenia are full of many problems and these young leaders have committed themselves to addressing the current issues through a combination of journalism and information technology.

This time we want to share with You the story of one of our beneficiaries, Alina, as well as details of her meeting in Georgia. Here it is.

We would like to inform you that the names of all project participants were changed in order to protect their privacy.

A seminar entitled "Digital Stories" was held in Bakuriani, Georgia from December 1st through 8th with 22 participants from 8 different countries (Armenia, Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova, Poland, Lithuania, Italy, France). The workshop provided participants with the opportunity to gain new insights into the preparation of video clips where participants had to share short stories from their lives. Alina, who has been a beneficiary of Zartonk-89 for many years, participated in the workshop and is willing to share her knowledge and skills with our other beneficiaries.

In response to how the seminar will help the process of community development, Alina answered that she hoped to have a workshop in her community in Arapi sometime in the near
future to help give young people the skills needed to create “digital stories.”
The following was related to what she revealed as a result of cooperation with other participants in other countries: Everyone, regardless of age, gender, or country, is concerned with the vision of making a better tomorrow, for which they develop and bring to life different ideas.

Our young experts are full of passion, diligence and achievement. Thanks to your donations we will continue to help them overcome challenges and move forward. From time to time they have the opportunity to get training in other countries, as well.
Thanks again for your heavy impact on this program. A better future for our communities is becoming visible thanks to your support. Today and every day, we look forward to welcoming you and hoping that the Armenian communities will become more active and prosperous through this program. Thank you for being with us.

Let’s create a wonderful #GivingTuesday for children:

Dear donors and supporters,

Due to your donations, we continue to support the school-aged children living in the rural communities of Armenia.

In remote communities of Armenia, people live in extreme poverty. It is difficult for parents to build a prosperous life for their children, as many of them can hardly even make a living. The goal of our team is to improve the quality of life for children in these families and, most importantly, educate them.
Our pre-selected pedagogical staff regularly organizes informal meetings in these remote regions and in Yerevan, providing the beneficiaries with necessary school-based knowledge and “life skills."
Recently we had a meeting at Zartonk-89 dedicated to friendship ideas and themes. It has had a significant positive impact, especially among school-age children. During teamwork, they discussed how to build a strong and lasting friendship. The participants enthusiastically displayed posters on the human values that help to build true friendship.
In the other part of the meeting, we discussed the importance of teamwork and taught the children about its value. It is very important for us to see their collective strength, as they are future community leaders.

Dear Donors,

We would like to inform you that the names of all project participants were changed in order to protect their privacy.

Thank you once again! We want to share with you an important event and ask for your continued support.
#GivingTuesday is a global movement that kicks off the biggest giving season of the year with charity and gratitude. It inspires people to take collective action to improve their communities, give back in better, smarter ways to charities and causes they believe in, and help create a better world.
Zartonk-89 has joined #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving that harnesses the collective power of individuals, communities, and organizations to encourage philanthropy and to celebrate generosity worldwide. We would like to celebrate this important and special day with you. Join this movement, make a donation, and help the beneficiaries. Thank you for being with us. Armenian children will continue to benefit from your support.

The Launch of a Project in Yerevan

Dear donors, supporters,
Please find below the first report on our new project. We are happy to inform you that this important and special program has been kicked off in Yerevan.
Millions of people had to leave their homeland and look for a shelter in various countries because of the armed conflict in Syria.
Those who survived the war are mostly children from Armenian families living in Syria.
Our goal is to support those school aged children and give them an opportunity to get integrated into Armenian society.
It is not an easy process as we are dealing with children from a vulnerable group and we take on each step with huge responsibility.
In the Zartonk-89 NGO, we ran a training course for Armenian and refugee children with the aim to create a friendly atmosphere and, of course, to help them recover from their emotional traumas.

Our next priority is to provide the children with the necessary notebooks which they will use for classes at school.
During the meeting, the beneficiaries had the chance to work both as a team and individually. The participants were completing their assigned tasks, listening to one another and obtaining new knowledge with great enthusiasm.

Dear Donors,
We would like to inform you that the names of all project participants were changed in order to protect their privacy.

We present you Alex, who is the first beneficiary of this project; his story and speech are addressed
to all the donors:

Hello. I’m Alex and I am 8 years old. I study in the 3rd grade. I have a sister who studies at the university. I love playing basketball, football and going to karate group practice.
I wish to become a karate competitor and I dream of flying to space. I love football a lot and my favourite team is Real Madrid and my favourite footballer is Cristiano Ronaldo above all other footballers. I would like to continue being involved in this project and live happily in Armenia.
With such a story, the first beneficiary introduces himself. Your individual gesture gives them more and helps them to forget those feelings which are already fading into the past. It’s high time to see them smiling and without psychological problems.
Thank you for your support and commitment.

Opening of new informal center in Arapi։


Dear Donors,
Thanks to you, we are able to continue to support young journalists. Young people have a special influence in their communities, and our goal is to empower them with training in media skills, modern technologies. and civic journalism.
These beneficiaries often call themselves "new generation young experts" and regularly seek out up-to-date solutions for their community problems. This is why they attend our informal classes, to supplement their existing knowledge.
Thanks to your generosity, we have organized an interactive meeting in one of our Arapi communities. We are pleased to announce that a new informal union has come together in this community with the aim of using the strengths and talents of young people to promote sustainable community development. The Arapi beneficiaries are enthusiastic; they spare no effort in addressing community issues that have gone unaddressed for years. Our team will organize trainings for them, and teach them how to measure social impact.
Your donations continue to make it possible for us to support these active and proactive young people. Thanks to your generosity, we are confident that this new community outreach will grow into an important new branch of this work.
We would like to inform you that the names of all project participants were changed in order to protect their privacy.
We would like to introduce you to Ani, one of our new beneficiaries.
Hi, I'm Ani. This is my first time participating in this program. I feel great about this team because I am learning interesting and important things. Now I am ready to use my abilities for the benefit of the community I live in. I am glad that this branch of the Online Center for Young Journalists has opened in my community. I consider myself an active person who can change the world. I want to express my gratitude to everyone who has helped make this happen.