Vagif sits on the worn wooden bench outside his home, gazing at the hills that stretch beyond the village. The land is different here—softer, warmer than the mountains of Artsakh. It has been a year and a half since he and his wife, Gyulkhanum, arrived in this village, carrying only memories and the weight of loss.
“We came to Goris from Rev village of Askeran region (Artsakh)," Vagif recalls. "At first, we registered in Alaverdi, thinking it would be safer, farther from the border. The people there treated us like family, but the conditions were harsh. Houses were in ruins. My wife’s family was from Chinari village of Tavush region, and that connection led us here. We liked the village immediately-the people welcomed us with open arms. They didn’t look at us differently, they helped us in every way they could. Even my neighbor feels like an old friend."
Vagif’s wife Gyulkhanum has built her life with hard work, and she continues to do so even now. "We have been here for over a year, but it still doesn’t feel like home," she admits. "We try to repair, we clean, we plant. But home is something more. We left everything behind in Artsakh—our farm, our animals, our land. We had everything there, but we earned it all with our own hands. We worked constantly, never resting. And then, one day, we had to leave it all behind."
When the Azeri soldiers started bombing back in September of 2023, Vagif’s family had to take a random “Ural” truck and head to Stepanakert. “The truck was full of the owner's animals—cows, sheep. We squeezed in among them, terrified. But we made it. That’s what matters," he says adding that life is about rebuilding now.
Vagif and Gyulkhanum have borrowed land in Chinari to cultivate and live with their son, Nver Balayan, 38, and three grandchildren. "This house doesn’t have a yard," Gyulkhanum explains. "So, we asked for land to plant our own food. We have never bought anything from the store back in Artsakh—we used to grow everything ourselves, so we want to do it here as well. My daughter-in-law takes care of the house and the children, and we help each other. We are doing everything we can to stand on our own feet again."
The family has applied for citizenship to be able to get the certificate for housing. "We dream of having our own home. There are no houses available here, but we found a half-built house in Varagavan village. It has land, and with time and effort, we could turn it into something real."
Grandma Gyulkhanum says that it’s warmer in Chinari than in Artsakh, although they still had to install a wood stove. "But firewood is expensive here. When we were provided with firewood, it meant everything. If not, Vagif would have had to drag small amounts from the forest little by little. It’s hard to explain what that help meant to us,” she says looking at her husband Vagif who chuckles saying: "My wife says hygiene products are even more important than bread! We used to buy only the essential soap, dishwashing liquid—but when we learned that we would receive these items every month for a year, we were overjoyed. It was something we never expected."
The family’s only goal for now is to have a home of their own and live in peace without thinking of moving to another village or region. "We’d like to have our home - to renovate it, to be able to live without uncertainty. The rest, we can build with our own hands. We are not afraid of hard work."
The "Comprehensive Assistance to Refugees from Nagorno Karabakh and Vulnerable Host Communities" project was made possible due to a generous grant provided to FAR and Sign of Hope (SoH) by the German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO), as a contribution to our continuous support to refugee families settled across Armenia. Thanks to their generosity, we have been able to reach out to over 400 refugee families in Berd, Ijevan, and Noyemberyan providing mental health and psychosocial support, protection services, and assistance with shelter, non-food items, and winterization.
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