What is the Jinishian Memorial Program?

An ecumenical relief and development agency of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Jinishian Memorial Program (JMP) "enables Armenians in need to move from poverty and despair to self-sufficiency and hope — through relief, development, and spiritual uplift."

Survivor of the 1988 earthquake in Armenia is a beneficiary of the Jinishian Memorial Program housing project in Giumri. Photo by Bob Ellis.

JMP is a ministry of the PC(USA)'s General Assembly Council and is part of the World Mission ministry area. It is directly involved in community-based development, the delivery of social services and relief projects to thousands of Armenians. It is particularly attuned to the socially vulnerable of Armenian societies, especially the elderly who live without pension support or on very limited income, as well as families with children, whose income is below the poverty level. Vocational training, use of revolving loan funds, summer camps and housing assistance have been utilized.

Members of the Maralik Farmer's Cooperative in Maralik, Armenia. Photo by Bob Ellis.

No formal education or schooling assistance is provided, since the donor, Vartan H. Jinishian, observed in his will that basic education should be the primary responsibility of each nation's government. He also observed that other Armenian organizations are frequently involved in formal education and schooling, and he preferred to make support originating from his resources available for other needs of the communities.

Increasingly, JMP affirms a self-help approach to economic development, which encourages the poor to identify their own needs, define their goals, plan for solutions, and organize themselves to attain the objectives they have chosen. Community-based development is being introduced in three of the five countries where JMP is working.

Young men learn to make furniture in a vocational training program in Istanbul.

One of the unique features of JMP is its mandate to provide programs of spiritual uplift in partnership with the Armenian Christian denominations. Its ecumenical commitments are evident in the composition of advisory committees who provide advice and guidance to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and JMP staff in the various countries.

Click on the questions below to learn more about the program.

• Who was Vartan H. Jinishian?
• How and when was the Jinishian Memorial Program founded?
• Why is the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) involved?
• Where is the Jinishian Memorial Program active today?
• How is the Jinishian Memorial Program administered?

Who was Vartan H. Jinishian?

Vartan H. Jinishian was born 1870 in Marash, Turkey, the oldest son of the Reverend Haroutune Jinishian and Mrs. Catherine Jinishian. He later named his endowment fund in honor of his parents, emigrants to America in the early 20th century. Near the end of the 19th century, he moved to France and finally to the U.S. After arriving in New York, his first job was as an English teacher. He later joined a firm owned by another Armenian, Mihran Karageuzian. He became a partner in that firm and it pioneered the manufacture of oriental rugs and carpets. Vartan H. Jinishian was also a collector of fine art and imported, oriental carpets. He invested in real estate in New York City, especially in Manhattan. He maintained membership in both the Armenian Evangelical Church and the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

How and when was the Jinishian Memorial Program founded?

In 1966, when he was 95 years old, Vartan H. Jinishian and the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) agreed to establish an endowment fund under the auspices of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Although administered by the church, the agreement stipulated that it should seek the advice and counsel of a joint advisory committee, composed of five persons, both ethnic Armenians and Presbyterian officials. In the years after his death in July 1966, the fund benefited from more than $9 million in bequests. Only the interest and dividends of this fund were to be used to benefit poor and needy Armenians who lived outside the U.S. The first steps of the Jinishian Memorial Program were in Aleppo, Syria and Beirut, Lebanon.