The Gechidjian Family

THE GECHIDJIAN FAMILY

Haigazun Gechidjian was born in 1900, in the town of Hadjin in Mountainous Cilicia. His parents were Ghazaros Gechidjian and Mariam Echekian. After fleeing from Adana to Mersin, Haigazun, who miraculously survived the church fire in Izmir, swam ceaselessly for two days in the Mediterranean Sea; he was found and rescued by an American ship. As he escaped the clutches of death, he took refuge in the port of Piraeus, finally reaching Athens in 1921. Haigazun’s wife, Tamitsa Chalian was born in 1906; she was the daughter of Garabed Chalian, the last mayor of Hadjin (perished on 15 october1920). Six months before the heroic self-defense of Hadjin, Tamitsa, her mother, and the other children of the family made a hairbreadth escape to Athens. Tamitsa and Haigazun met and got married in 1922-23. In 1928, they moved from Greece to Buenos Aires. The Gechidjians reached Argentina with their first child, Krikor, who was six months old. Their two children fell victim to the poverty and deprivation of post-war Europe, and Haigazun vowed never to return there. They settled down in the workingclass neighborhood in Valentin Alsina. Haigazun held office at the State Water Supply Agency. Then, he engaged in leather industry – a popular craft in Argentina in those days. Haigazun and Tamitsa had other children apart from Krikor: Pablo, Garabed, and Maria. All their sons received higher education: krikor in medicine, Pablo in law, and Garabed in dentistry. Later, they left their professional occupation and helped Haigazun to expand and modernize their family's small factory and succeeded in doing so. Their only daughter, Maria, liked dancing; she completed Spanish dance courses and, in the 1950s-60s, became a famous flamenco dancer named Nani Mora. She won the best stages of famous theaters in Argentina and reached the USA.