English
Հայերեն
Русский
A bust of Jean-Pierre Bernհardt, a Swiss humanist and a great friend of “Arabkir” Medical Complex, was placed in the yard of "ArBeS" Health Center. This is a sign of love and gratitude to a person with whom "Arabkir" has had a long and fruitful journey since the 1988 earthquake.
The commemoration ceremony was attended by Jean-Pierre's wife and son, Françoise Bernhardt and Martin Bernhardt, Lukas Rosenkranz, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Switzerland to Armenia, Jean-Pierre's Armenian colleagues, friends and students.
"If I start telling the story of our friendship, our plans, difficulties and successes, it will take days to present it all. What you see today in the "Arabkir" Medical Complex, in the "ArBeS" Health Center, in the "Aparan" health camp, in what serves the Armenian people today, the Armenian children, in all that, Jean-Pierre has his contribution. We wouldn't be what we are today if Jean-Pierre wasn't in our lives and if he didn't teach us to dream. Jean-Pierre was our dear friend, our invaluable advisor, and for me personally, someone who became a brother," said Professor Ara Babloyan in his speech.
"In the short period of my diplomatic mission in Armenia, I realized that Jean-Pierre is one of the symbols of Armenia-Switzerland friendship, and his brotherhood with Professor Babloyan is the source of many programs and ideas aimed at the development of healthcare and improving the quality of children’s life in Armenia. This is invaluable," Ambassador Rosenkranz said.
The attendees were also welcomed by the children from the kindergarten, who presented their warm performances in Armenian and French. Having a kindergarten was also Jean-Pierre's idea.
Ara Babloyan and Martin Bernhardt planted trees next to Jean-Pierre's bust, hoping that they will live long, like the friendship between Armenia and Switzerland, "Arabkir" and Jura canton, Ara Babloyan and Jean-Pierre Bernhardt.
Martin Bernhardt thanked them for the extremely exciting and important event, noting that the most exciting thing are the children, who were always in Jean-Pierre's mind and dreams. "And now we are happy that Jean-Pierre is here at “ArBeS” with this work so alive, so natural, simple and modest like him," said Martin Bernhardt, giving special thanks to the author of the sculpture, Emin Petrosyan.
