From Stranger to Family

It was the summer of 2015. I had just arrived in the United States. New country, new language rhythms, new customs, new everything. After just one week in bustling New York, I was sent up to St. Vartan Camp for Session C. I didn’t know what to expect. I had never been to a church camp in America before.

Fr. Vasken Kouzouian was the camp director that year. I didn’t know him well at the time, but his calm, kind presence made a difference. He had a way of leading without pushing, of guiding without overwhelming. And I watched him, grateful for his example. He didn’t know it, but his welcome helped me breathe a little easier. Helped me feel a little less lost.

Then came one particular evening. We were gathered around the campfire. The stars above us, the crackle of fire before us, and the voices of youth rising in song and laughter. And then someone handed me two crackers, a piece of chocolate, and this strange white thing that looked like a cloud. “You’ve never had a s’more?” they asked. “You have to try it!”

They showed me how to roast the marshmallow and how to sandwich it with the chocolate. I took a bite. It was messy. It was sticky. It was sweet.

That first summer, I tasted a new dessert. But more than that, I tasted the hospitality of the Armenian Church in America. I tasted the kindness of its people. I saw the beauty of its youth. I witnessed how, even far from home, God had already prepared a place for me. I was part of something greater. A household. A family.

And I think that’s exactly what Paul is talking about in Ephesians when he writes, “You are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God” (Ephesians 2:19). Through Christ, we are brought near. We are adopted, accepted, and welcomed home.

And as Armenians, we know this well, our shared faith has bound us together for centuries. Whether in Armenia or across the diaspora, we remain one household of faith, carrying forward a sacred heritage, a living legacy our ancestors wove together with courage, sacrifice, and hope.