Elizabeth Yegsa Mazadoorian

Elizabeth Yegsa Aharonian Mazadoorian died Sunday, April 29, 2007 at the Hospital of Central Connecticut at the age of 94. She was a resident of New Britain for more than 75 years. She was born in the village of Yegheki in the province of Kharpert to Lucig Der Bagdasarian Aharonian and Harootiun Dado Aharonian in 1912. While she was an infant her father Dado came to the United States to earn money for the family. During that time, the Genocide began when Yegsa was three years old. She personally witnessed the most barbaric treatment of fellow Armenians and actually started out with her mother and two uncles in the horrible death marches in which her mother and uncles were put to death. Before her death, her mother literally gave her young daughter Yegsa away in order to save her daughter's life. Young Yegsa lived with a Christian Arabic speaking Lebanese foster family for the next five years and lost all memory of her Armenian identity until she was found by another survivor from her village and returned to her native village of Yegheki. In Yegheki she was placed in the Near East Relief Foundation orphanage and then taken with other Armenian children to Constantinople and then Corinth Greece. Throughout her years in the care of the Near East Relief, she relearned the Armenian language, received an excellent Christian education and developed a strong sense of kinship and loyalty to her fellow orphans and Genocide survivors. She has fond memories of many caregivers from the Near East Relief Foundation. She was finally reunited with her father and brought to this country in 1928. She proudly became an American citizen. She married Nighos Mazadoorian, also a Genocide survivor, in 1933. After living briefly in Detroit and Whitinsville Mass, they settled in New Britain. Yegsa and Nighos had two sons, Deacon Charles Mazadoorian and Attorney Harry Mazadoorian. Yegsa worked in local factories and was not reluctant to assume duties which had previously only been given to men. She was recognized for her efforts in maintaining defense related production during World War II. She also worked at local clothing manufacturers. Among the local factories where she worked were the Union Manufacturing Company, the Fafnir Bearing Company where she earned defense production recognition during World War II, Landers Frary and Clark and the General Electric Company. Yegsa had always been devoted to her family including her late father, husband and sons. She was a classic Armenian mother whose goal was to instill in her children a knowledge, love and respect for the Armenian culture and to obtain a good education. Her devotion, dedication and commitment and loyalty to her family were unconditional and unequivocal and there was nothing in her power or possession which she was not willing to sacrifice for their future and their education. Through her personal example and under her guidance, both of her sons graduated from Yale College and her son Harry from Yale Law School. She was a member and faithful attendee of the Armenian Church of the Holy Resurrection church since its inception. She took great pride in assisting her late son Charles as he prepared for his ordination as a Deacon. For a number of years, she served as a skillful teacher in the Churches' Armenian school. In addition to all of the family she lost in the Genocide, she was predeceased by her father Dado, her son Charles Mazadoorian, her husband Nighos. She is survived by a son, Attorney Harry N. Mazadoorian and his wife Janice of Kensington, by two granddaughters, Beth Mazadoorian and her husband W. Wilson Keithline III of New Britain and Lynne Mazadoorian and her husband Attorney John M Lockhart III of Avon New York and by two great granddaughters Margaret and Catherine Keithline of New Britain. She took great pleasure from instructing her granddaughters and great granddaughters in the Armenian language and culture. The family expresses its gratitude to the staff at the Jerome Home for the professionalism, kindness and affection shown to Elizabeth. Funeral services will be held on Thursday at 10:00 AM at Erickson-Hansen Funeral Home, 411 S. Main St. and at 11:00 AM at the Armenian Church of the Holy Resurrection. Burial will be in Fairview Cemetery. Calling hours are Wednesday from 5-8 PM with a prayer service to be conducted by Fr. Kapriel Mouradjian at 7:00 PM. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Armenian Church of the Holy Resurrection, 1910 Stanley Street, New Britain, CT 06053.