The Crescenta Valley Der Ohanesian Youth Center (CV Youth Center) at 2633 Honolulu Ave. has been supporting the community since its founding in 1989. 

By Mary O’KEEFE

According to its website the CV Der Ohanesian Youth Center (CV Youth Center) partners and supports a number of organizations including the Armenian Revolutionary Federation – Zavarian Chapter, Armenian Relief Society – Talin Chapter and the Armenian Youth Federation – Zartonk Chapter. 

But its support spreads far beyond these organizations as it is also a strong supporter of first responders and the CV community as a whole. It has been supportive of CV High School organizations like Prom Plus and the Fire House Youth Center. 

On Nov. 25, leaders of the CV Youth Center invited local emergency responders to a dinner that was hosted by Byblos Mediterranean Bakery and Pizza. 

“The purpose of this event was for the CV Youth Center to demonstrate its gratitude for the five agencies invited – Glendale Police Dept., Glendale Fire Dept., Los Angeles County Fire Dept., Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Dept. and California Highway Patrol,” said Vahak Tchobanian, outreach committee chair for the Center. 

Over 60 emergency responders attended the event.

“Supporting our first responders should be a priority of every member of the community. They put their lives on the line to protect our safety and well-being and to make our community a better place to live and for us to participate in every way,” said Awadis Jingozian, owner of Byblos. 

Supporting first responders is just one of the many outreach events of the CV Youth Center. 

“The Center has done numerous community projects such as Foothill Beautification with LA Supervisor Kathryn Barger, [an] addiction awareness workshop, disaster preparedness information programs and providing meals for underprivileged families,” Tchobanian said. 

At its foundation the Center is focused on supporting the youth of the community.

“The programming at the CV Armenian Youth Center includes a summer day camp for school-aged children, Saturday heritage school and charitable projects for local and international families,” he added. “Future plans include reaching out to our neighboring communities, increasing opportunities for positive interactions.”

In another of its outreach projects, the Center’s youth will once again drop off toys at the Glendale Fire Dept.

“The CV Der Ohanesian Youth Center will deliver its donated toys through the Spark Of Love Toy Drive to Glendale Fire Dept., Station #29, on Friday, Dec. 19 at 7:30 p.m. with about 60 youth members participating,” Tchobanian said. “This is the 15th year that the Center has done this [outreach donation].”

The youth center was founded over three decades ago but in 2018 it was rededicated as the Meher and Satig Der Ohanessian Youth Center. The Center had been remodeled through the support of the Ohanessian family. 

For more information visit https://cvarmeniancenter.com.