The Georgetown Boys

The Georgetown Boys

Apramian, Jack.
Toronto: Zoryan Institute, 2009, 226 pages. ISBN 978-1895485066.

Description:
In the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide, thousands of children were orphaned, having lost their parents in the devastation that continued from April 1915 until the end of WWI in 1918. At the war's end, relief agencies gathered many of these young boys and girls and began the arduous process of resettling and resocializing them; however, the Turkish War of Independence put these children at risk once again, forcing them to be moved to the safety of orphaneges set up to receive them in Greece and throughout the Middle East. This book is the story of one small group of 109 Armenian orphan boys and 39 Armenian orphan girls who were rescued from the carnage and given a chance for a new life. In what became known as ""Canada's noble experiment,"" these children were brought to an orphanage in Georgetown, Ontario, beginning in 1923, where they were to be given new identities and trained to become good Christian farmers. Having lost everything, the most precious thing remaining to them was the memory of their families and their heritage. This book, written by Jack Apramian, one of the Armenian orphan boys brought to Georgetown, tells the story of the challenges they faced in adapting to their new country. This story is part of the chronicle of all those who have sought refuge in North America from persecution, hunger and death. The story of the Georgetown Boys and Girls represents one of the earliest examples of Canadian international humanitarian aid as well as Canadian multiculturalism.