Young ladies prepare for LA Debutante Ball Feb. 20

12/2/2011

Los Angeles – The Ladies Auxiliary of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America is in the midst of preparing for their fortieth annual Debutante Ball.

The 2011 Ball will be held on Sunday, February 20, 2011 at the beautiful downtown Los Angeles, Millennium Biltmore Hotel at 506 South Grand Avenue. There will be a reception beginning at 5:00 p.m. Under the blessings and auspices of His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian the presentation of our 16 Debutantes will begin at 6:00 p.m. For reservations, please call Rose Ketchoyan at (818) 788-5138.

Bridget Katherine Abajian is the daughter of Peter and Dr. Houry Abajian of Beverly Hills, California. She is the granddaughter of Katherine & Jilber Abajian and the late Angela & Karekin Barsoumian .She attends St. James Armenian Apostolic Church of Los Angeles where she has attended Sunday school since she was 3 years old. She has attended the Western Diocese Armenian Church camp since she was 8 years old.

Bridget is a junior at Beverly Hills High School. She has been on the Honor roll since her freshman year. She is a Varsity cheerleader and a member of TMAD (Teens make a difference) which helps raise money for kids with cancer. She has volunteered at numerous homeless shelters. Bridget has also worked to help raise money for Armenia’s orphans. She helped rebuild the St. James church nursery and organized her ACYO to participate in the Armenian Genocide march for the last several years. Bridget with her sister Kristen started a charity this year called Share- A Pair, which collects new shoes to distribute to Armenian needy children. Their goal is to collect 1,000 pairs or $10,000 and distribute it in Armenia this summer.

Bridget has lived in Armenia for a year where she learned the language and experienced Armenian culture. Participated in a photography program over the summer and went to Armenian dance classes and trained in gymnastics while she was there.

Bridget’s academic goals are to go to either medical school or dentistry school.

Kristen Angela Abajian is the daughter of Peter and Houry Abajian of Beverly hills, California. She is the granddaughter of Katherine & Jilber Abajian and the late Angela & Karekin Barsoumian. She attends St. James Armenian Apostolic Church of Los Angeles where she has attended Sunday school since she was 3 years old. She has attended the Western Diocese Armenian Church camp since she was 8 years old.

Kristen’s a junior at Beverly Hills High School. She has been on the Honor roll since her freshman year. She is a Varsity cheerleader and a member of TMAD (Teens make a difference) which helps raise money for kids with cancer. She has volunteered at numerous homeless shelters. Bridget has also worked to help raise money for Armenia’s orphans. She helped rebuild the St. James church nursery and organized her ACYO to participate in the Armenian Genocide march for the last several years. Kristen, with her sister Bridget started a charity this year called Share- A Pair, which collects new shoes to distribute to Armenian needy children. Their goal is to collect 1,000 pairs or $10,000 and distribute it in Armenia this summer.

Kristen has lived in Armenia for a year where she learned the language and experienced Armenian culture. Participated in a photography program over the summer and went to Armenian dance classes and trained in gymnastics while I was there.

Kristen’s academic goals are to attend a university with hopes to go to business school.

Alexandra Sylvia Bailey is the daughter of Michael and Natalie Tarkanian Bailey of San Diego, California. She is the granddaughter of Anne and Charles Tarkanian, the late Sylvia Tarkanian and Dr. Mort and Noni Jorgensen. She attends St. John Garabed Armenian Apostolic Church of San Diego where she is a member of their ACYO. She has attended the Western Diocese Armenian Church camp for the last 8 years.

Allie is a senior at Torrey Pines High School in San Diego, California. She is a Scholar Athlete and has played Varsity soccer for 4 years. She is a member of the National Honor Society as well as the California Scholarship Federation. She was named San Diego County Player of the Year in soccer and made the 1st all CIF team. Outside of school and the soccer field, Allie has been the President of the National Charity League and its historian. She is one of the top 50 female soccer recruits in the country and was selected ESPN All- American. She has been selected for the Olympic Development Regional Soccer Team for the past 4 years traveling to Costa Rica, Portugal and Spain to compete international matches representing the USA. She helped to win the National Championship with her club team, the San Diego Surf and been their captain for 9 years.

Allie will attend Texas A&M University in the fall and will play Division 1 Women’s Soccer on a Soccer Scholarship. Her academic goal is to major in Communications with a minor in Sports Management with a goal of becoming a sports broadcaster. When she is not playing soccer, she enjoys traveling, hanging out with her friends, especially Catherine Keligian, her best friend since she met her at Armenian camp 9 years ago and reading Harry Potter books.

Laura Rose Boranian is the daughter of Mark and Susan Boranian of Woodland Hills, California. She is the granddaughter of Sam and Jennie Boranian and Fred and Rose Darian. Her Godfathers are her brothers, Paul, Eric and Mark Boranian. Laura attends Saint Peter Church in Van Nuys and has been involved in Sunday school activities since preschool age. She has been an active member of the Armenian Christian Youth Organization for five years. Laura looks forward to the Western Diocese Armenian Camp every summer where she has made lifelong friends in her past nine years of attendance. She has lasting memories from her years as a camper and especially enjoyed serving as a counselor in training this past year. Laura would like to continue to serve the Armenian camp in future years as counselor and staff.

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