The Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Awards Dr. Garo H. Armen Medal of Honor

New York – September 19, 2007 –The Children of Armenia Fund (COAF) today announced that the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia has awarded the Medal of Honor to COAF’s founder and chairman, Garo H. Armen, PhD, for his outstanding contributions in the revitalization of rural communities in Armenia.

“The development of the country is primarily the role of the government, but in this period of transition, we need and always welcome the support of Diaspora organizations,” said Serzh Sargsyan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia, who presented Dr. Armen with the Medal of Honor during the opening of a newly built COAF school in the village of Lernagog in August.

At COAF, Dr. Armen has made significant contributions in revitalizing rural Armenia by creating an unprecedented development program, which provides immediate and sustainable benefits to the country’s children and youth. Following the successful implementation of the Model Village program in 2004, turning around a small, vulnerable Armenian village in danger of extinction, Dr. Armen implemented the Model Cluster program in 2006 targeting an additional five villages of the Armavir District, including Lernagog. By the end of 2006, the Model Cluster program touched the lives of more than 16,000 people, of whom 4,500 were children and youth.

“I am very grateful to be a recipient of the Prime Minister’s Medal of Honor, which I accept on behalf of COAF, and all the organizations and individuals that have supported our comprehensive rural development program,” said Dr. Armen. “We are proud of our accomplishments but remain mindful of the tremendous amount of work that is required to bring back hope to rural Armenia.”

Along with his determined efforts at COAF, Dr. Armen is focused on developing improved treatments to fight cancer at Antigenics, a biotechnology company he founded in 1994. Antigenics utilizes a proprietary heat shock protein technology to develop innovative immunotherapeutics for cancers and infectious diseases. The company’s lead product Oncophage was recently submitted to the Russian regulatory authority for approval in the treatment of intermediate-risk kidney cancer.

From mid-2002 through 2004, Dr. Armen served as chairman of Elan Corporation, an Ireland-based biopharmaceutical company. Dr. Armen successfully executed a major turnaround of the company by restructuring its balance sheet and product portfolio. Elan is now poised to emerge as one of the leading biopharmaceutical companies in the industry today.

About COAF’s Model Cluster Program

The Model Cluster program aims to improve the lives of vulnerable communities by providing the necessary infrastructure and essential resources for community-based sustainable development, and providing villagers with the opportunities and tools to rebuild and revitalize their communities. The Model Cluster includes six communities in the Armavir district: Karakert, Argina, Dalarik, Lernagog, Myasnikyan and Shenik. To date, the program has created 562 new jobs; helped 2,300 villagers gain access to utility water; brought medical information and health management to 2,800 adults and 2,830 children; guaranteed 1,187 villagers access to much needed medication; trained 158 volunteers in first aid and disease prevention; and significantly improved the school environment for 798 children, resulting in an increased attendance in these schools. This is the first integrated village development program to be recognized worldwide as an exemplary template of sustainable development by international aid agencies and donors alike.

About COAF

Founded in 2000, the Children of Armenia Fund is an independent, nonprofit, nongovernmental organization (501(c)(3). COAF seeks to reverse the impoverished conditions affecting significant numbers of Armenia’s children by revitalizing Armenia’s villages and implementing projects that provide immediate and sustainable benefits to children and youth.

CONTACTS: Sunny Uberoi, (212) 994-8206; or e-mail info@coafkids.org