Epress.am News from Armenia
The first-ever Vagina Monologues in Armenia took place Sunday to a sold-out audience. The event, sponsored by the Women’s Resource Center, aimed to not only bring attention to the issue of violence against women and girls, but also to raise money for the Mayrik (“Mother”) Fund, which was created to raise funds for one mother in Armenia who has breast cancer and must undergo expensive drug treatment.
About a month ago, Syu’s mother had an emergency mastectomy and finds herself in a difficult situation. Her doctor has prescribed chemotherapy, followed by 18 ampules of the drug Herceptin — each ampule of which costs about $3,000 US. In other countries, this drug is no less expensive; however, the cost of treatment is either subsidized or covered in full by the state or benefit packages. This option is not available in Armenia.
Syu sought the help of her friends and together they created the Mayrik Fund, which aims to raise money not only for Syu’s mom, but for all women in Armenia who find themselves in a similar situation. The group has already organized a few fundraising concerts and plans on holding another concert, as well as two art exhibits to raise the much-needed funds.
One exhibit will be held at the Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art (ACCEA, or NPAK in Armenian), while the other exhibit, held on May 3, will feature artwork by children and will be on display at the Children’s Art Museum as part of the National Center of Aesthetics on Yerevan’s Abovyan St. A rock concert is planned for Friday, May 13.
For more information about upcoming events and if you’d like to help, visit or join the group’s Facebook page Մայրիկ/Mother/Мама.