PARAMUS, N.J. – It is with deep sadness that the Board of Directors of the Armenian Missionary Association of America announces the untimely passing of its beloved Executive Director/CEO Zaven Khanjian, on August 9, 2024, in Glendale, California.
“The AMAA mourns the passing of its Executive Director/CEO Zaven Khanjian who served the organization in this position for 10 years with utmost care and dedication. In fact, his entire life was an example of service to his church, community and the entire Armenian nation in our homeland of Armenia and in the Diaspora,” said Dr. Nazareth Darakjian, president of the AMAA Board of Directors. “He was a true leader, very much loved by the staff, Board members and supporters of the organization. He was a man of vision, a great communicator, a multitalented writer and speaker. He was a kind person, a family man, and his many grandchildren were the light of his life. Above all, he was a man of unshakable faith and a true soldier of Christ. Mr. Khanjian’s passing is a great loss for the AMAA, the Armenian Evangelical Church, the Armenian nation and all of humanity. May the Holy Spirit console his family and friends and may the Lord bless his memory until the end of time.”
Husband, father, grandfather, author and advocate of the Armenian culture and heritage both in Armenia and the Diaspora, Zaven peacefully passed away surrounded by his loving family.
Born July 31, 1944, and raised in Aleppo, Syria, he was one of five children of Armenian Genocide survivors Vasken and Verjin Khanjan. He grew up in the Armenian Evangelical Emmanuel Church and was an active member of its youth group.
Following his graduation from Aleppo College, he attended the American University of Beirut in Lebanon and in 1967 earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration. Soon after graduation he moved to the Persian Gulf and spent 13 years working in his profession, assuming top positions in prestigious companies while creating “Little Armenias” together with like-minded Armenians in the area.
He married his devoted wife Sona Kelligian in 1973, and together they began their family of two sons and a daughter. In 1979, Khanjian moved with his family to California, and after working for a few years, went into the real estate business starting his own successful real estate company, Kanjyan Realty in Glendale in 1987.
Khanjian was appointed as executive director/CEO of the AMAA on September 1, 2014. During his 10-year tenure, he oversaw many milestones, including the opening of the Khoren and Shooshanig Avedisian School in Yerevan, the commemoration of the centennial of the Armenian Genocide in 2015, a successful AMAA Centennial Capital Campaign and the AMAA’s 100th Anniversary in 2018.
Over the years, Khanjian was an active member of the Greater Los Angeles Community, serving in leadership capacities at the Armenia Fund, Armenian Evangelical Union of North America, Merdinian Armenian Evangelical School, United Armenian Congregational Church, Haigazian University of Beirut, Glendale Family YMCA, Salvation Army-Glendale Corps, Americans for Artsakh, Armenian-American Real Estate Association and as chairman of the Syrian Armenian Relief Fund, raising over $1 million dollars.
He contributed volumes of bilingual articles to American Armenia media and was the author of three Armenian books: Ays dune Kuget e Te Ims? (Is This Your House or Mine?); Srdi yev Mdki Tsolker (Reflections of the Mind and Soul); and Haleb Arachin Gayaran (Memoirs of a Memorable Childhood).
Khanjian was the recipient of numerous awards, including the Medal of Gratitude from RA President Serzh Sargsyan on May 28, 2017, in Armenia for his contributions toward strengthening Armenia-Diaspora relations and preservation of the Armenian identity. On September 13, 2019, he was awarded the Honorary Member Title from the Writers’ Union of Armenia for his books and articles on Armenia.
He was a member of the United Armenian Congregational Church in Los Angeles.
Zaven leaves behind his wife Sona; three children Vasken, Hrag and his wife Michelle, and Vana and her husband Armen Vartanian; five grandsons and one granddaughter; his brother and sisters, Laura Prather, Dicky Dodd and Dikran and Mariette Asdghig Khanjian. He was predeceased by his sister Anahid Terjimanian in April 2024.
Memorial service information will be forthcoming.
Armenian Missionary Association of America
The Armenian Missionary Association of America (AMAA) was founded in 1918, in Worcester, MA, and incorporated as a non-profit charitable organization in 1920 in the State of New York. We are a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization. Our purpose is to serve the physical and spiritual needs of people everywhere, both at home and overseas. To fulfill this worldwide mission, we maintain a range of educational, evangelistic, relief, social service, church and child care ministries in 24 countries around the world.
