Sunday, September 12^th, 2010 was a joyous and memorable day for St. Sarkis Church, Charlotte NC  parishioners.

The generous donation of Zaven and Ray Touloukian made it possible to have a second stained glass window for the Church, thus making the Sanctuary more mystical and beautiful.  Zaven and Ray are no strangers in the Charlotte community.  Years ago their generous donation tipped the balance for the purchase of the land where St. Sarkis Church was later constructed.  And a few years ago, again with their generous donation, the first stained glass window was constructed.

This second new window had its theme the “Crucifixion” and was beautifully designed and constructed, under the watchful eyes of the building manager, Charlie Diman, and with the step by step design, manufacturing monitoring of Zaven and Ray to have the final product not only a simple stained glass window but a work of art. This was dedicated to the memory of Sarkis and Zarouhi Touloukian, the parents of Zaven.

Sunday, September 12^th, Holy Badarak was celebrated by Fr. Daniel Findikyan, specially invited to Charlotte for the occasion.  The Church was full with parishioners and to the beautiful singing of the choir accompanied by the melodies of the organ, a heart filling and spiritually satisfying service was celebrated.

At the end of the Badarak service, Fr. Findikyan did the special blessing ceremony of the new stained glass window, followed by the special ceremony for the feast of the ‘Exaltation of the Holy Cross’.

Fr. Findikyan, in his sermon, talked about the meaning and the importance of the cross, reflected on the history of St. Sarkis Church and the early years of the formation of this Parish where he played a very important and leadership role, and connected the dots to the present day.  He drove home the message of the importance of cherishing St. Sarkis Church and its parish, embracing the community for the progress and the glory of St. Sarkis Church Charlotte.

At the conclusion of the service, the Parish Council invited everyone to a luncheon at the ‘Acopian Hall’, organized in honor of the Touloukian family and to thank them for their continuous love and generosity of St. Sarkis Church.  This luncheon gave the opportunity to the parishioners to mingle and exchange their feelings for this beautiful day in the life of St. Sarkis Church, Charlotte.