New York Community Advocate Antranik Boudakian to be Honored with ANCA Eastern Region Vahan Cardashian Award

October 4, 2024

Lifelong Hai Tahd activist and Armenian community leader Antranik Boudakian will be honored with the Vahan Cardashian Award at the ANCA Eastern Region (ANCA-ER) Endowment Fund 18th Annual Gala on October 19, 2024. The gala, which will bring together hundreds of Armenian activists and friends to celebrate the accomplishments of the ANCA-ER, will include an open bar cocktail reception, a curated silent auction with one-of-a-kind items from the homeland, and an awards program accompanied by a seated dinner.

The Vahan Cardashian Award is presented annually to a supporter of the ANCA-ER who demonstrates sustained commitment and involvement in the Armenian American community and its issues. Boudakian will join a long list of ANC activists previously recognized with this award, including Ken Sarajian, Barkev Kaligian, Joseph Dagdgian and Andrew Kzirian.

Antranik Boudakian, a child of Armenian Genocide survivors and lifelong member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), was born and raised in Aleppo, Syria alongside his brother Krikor and sister Zabel. He attended Haigazian Elementary School with tuition support from the Armenian Prelacy and the Armenian Relief Society. In 1964, he moved to New York, where he married his wife Marion Marashlian, to whom he has been married for 59 years. Together they have three children, Gregory, Liza and Seta, and eight grandchildren. He is the owner of Lorilil Jewelers in Forest Hills, New York.

Boudakian has been instrumental in advancing Armenian causes through New York politics. For years Boudakian has hosted fundraising events for local pro-Armenian politicians, including members of the U.S. Congress, the mayor and borough president, at his home in Queens. Boudakian was awarded the “Knights of Cilicia” medal by the Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia for his years of service raising funds for the Armenian Prelacy and encouraging local involvement in the church. He was also the New York Sales Ambassador for the ACAA Armenian Heritage Cruise for two decades and has supported ARF and Armenian Youth Federation programs.

“The ANCA is the best hope we have of helping Armenia from the United States. Seeing new generations of activists stepping up to continue the work gives me so much joy and encouragement. I am relieved to see that the Hai Tahd will never die,” Boudakian said.

The 18th Annual Gala will be held on Saturday, October 19, 2024, in Queens, New York at the Terrace on the Park (52-11 111th Street, Queens, New York). For more information about this year’s gala, email ergala@anca.org or visit givergy.us/ancaer2024.