In the fall of 2020, Armenia and Azerbaijan were involved in a military conflict over the territory of Artsakh, an Armenian-populated enclave geographically situated in Azerbaijan. Armenian civilian and military casualties have been estimated at nearly 5,000. While the quantity of fallen soldiers is itself a tragedy, the war has had the secondary effect of leaving children fatherless and mothers and families without their primary breadwinner. In March 2020, SOAR created the Families of Fallen Soldiers Relief Fund (FFSRF) to assist the families of fallen Armenian service personnel by providing direct financial support and children’s enrichment assistance. The Fund aims to build strong, caring, and loving bonds with each family and to follow the widows and children through the years to assure that no children of fallen Armenian soldiers are ever institutionalized. We believe that the service and sacrifices made by fallen Armenian service personnel should never be taken for granted and, just as they have become our heroes, we help their families get past their obstacles and guide them through their darkest times.

SOAR’s Fallen Soldiers Support Center in Yerevan (Vagharshyan Street 24/6, Apt. 38) serves as a non-residential facility that provides economic assistance, grief counseling, academic tutoring, job placement, and other support services to families of soldiers killed or severely injured in battle. The overarching goal of the Center is to offer compassionate and holistic support to spouses, children, and families grieving the death of an Armenian soldier killed or wounded in battle.