The John M. Azarian Memorial Armenian Youth Scholarship Fund was formed in 1976 following the untimely death of John M. Azarian, Sr., beloved husband and father.  Mr. Azarian was the son of Armenian immigrants and worked hard his entire life to serve the Armenian church and its community. He worked unselfishly for St. Leon’s Armenian Church and was instrumental in relocating the church from Paterson to Fair Lawn, New Jersey.  He was a founding father of the church in its new location and served for many years as an elected member of the Parish Council, specifically acting as Treasurer, on Fund Raising projects and capital programs.

Mr. Azarian started from humble beginnings, growing up in Paterson, New Jersey.  He put himself through college, attending Seton Hall University in West Orange, New Jersey, and graduated with a degree in Accounting.  He passed the CPA exam and became a practicing accountant, initially with Peat, Marwick and Mitchell and later started his own practice and opened his own office in downtown Paterson, New Jersey, which he later moved to Hawthorne, New Jersey.  Besides being devoted to the Armenian church, Mr. Azarian also worked hard to help those less fortunate and volunteered a considerable amount of his time to various charities.

Since its formation we have awarded over $400,000 in grants to assist deserving Armenian students who might otherwise not be able to complete their undergraduate studies.  It is our hope that someday those we help will be able to give something back to those less fortunate.