Part 1
On this week’s episode of the Armenian Assembly of America Radio Hour, Mihran was delighted to interview the unparalleled Beth Broussalian, Executive Director of HDIF-USA.
Inspired by Sir Timothy Straight and the Homeland Development Initiative Foundation’s (HDIF) mission to promote economic development in Armenia, in 2017 Beth Broussalian founded HDIF-USA, a nonprofit organization registered in California. Since then, Beth has served as Executive Director of HDIF-USA promoting job creation for women and persons with disabilities in Armenia through handicraft enterprise. Beth Broussalian was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. She received a B.A. in German Language and Literature and an M.A. in Armenian Art History, both from UCLA, where she also studied the Armenian language. In 1984, Beth participated in the Armenian Assembly of America’s Terjenian-Thomas Summer Internship Program in Washington, D.C.
Beth has long been actively engaged in the Armenian American community, and spent many years working in public and media relations for various organizations. For 11 years, she served as a grant writer for Junior Achievement of Armenia, winning over $6 million in funding. After participating in her first home build in 2010 with the Fuller Center for Housing in Armenia, she became increasingly interested in devoting her experiences and expertise to projects in Armenia. A resident of San Diego, Beth is married to her husband, Jim, and together they have two adult children. Beth is proud to have dual U.S. and Armenia citizenship.