Vrejoohie Armenian was born on June 2, 1938, in Jaffa, Palestine. One of six children, she was the youngest daughter of Bedros Bedrossian and Loucia Kouzouian Bedrossian and was herself a twin. Bedros came from the Cilician city of Vahka, and Loucia from Sis, the capital of Cilicia. Both were survivors of the Armenian Genocide of 1915 and subsequent forced exodus from Cilicia in 1921 by the Kemalist forces. After a grueling path, the young family finally settled on the Mediterranean coast in Jaffa, Palestine.
During early childhood, Vrejoohie attended the Armenian School of Saint Nicholas Armenian Apostolic Monastery of Jaffa. However, the Bedrossian family would soon face the 1948 forced exodus of 70,000 Palestinians and residents of Jaffa and relocate to Beirut, Lebanon, where they had to rebuild their lives yet again.
In Beirut, Vrejoohie enrolled in the Hamazkayin Nshan Palandjian Djemaran. She was a stellar student and fully embraced the tutelage of prominent teachers (and former statesmen of the First Republic of Armenia), including Simon Vratzian, Garo Sasouni, Karnig Guzalian, Moushegh Ishkhan, Karnig Panian, Yolande Adjemian, Antoine Kehiayan (Sir), Parsegh Ganachian, Karnig Topalian, Alice Kazanjian and others. She would establish lifelong friendships there.
In 1956, Vrejoohie’s family resettled in Philadelphia, where she continued her education. In 1962, she married her Djemaran schoolmate Garo Armenian at St. Gregory Armenian Apostolic Church in Philadelphia. In pursuit of educational and professional opportunities, they lived in numerous cities across the United States, Europe and the Middle East and finally settled in the suburbs of Washington DC. They were blessed with a son, three daughters, eight grandchildren as well as loving sons-in-law and daughter-in-law.
Alongside her family responsibilities, Vrejoohie worked at the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, her second home where she built meaningful friendships with wonderful colleagues.
Vrejoohie dedicated her energy to various spheres of Armenian-American community life. She was a member of the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF “Papken Suni” Chapter), the Armenian Relief Society (ARS “Satenig” Chapter), and the Hamazkayin Cultural & Educational Association. With a deep interest in pedagogy, she enjoyed teaching at the weekly Armenian schools within the church communities where she lived, including Hamasdegh Armenian School at the Soorp Khatch Church in Washington. She was committed to finding creative ways to bring the richness of the Armenian language and literature to life for the next generation. She also was dedicated to the cause of freedom and independence for Armenia and Artsakh. She actively supported advocacy efforts for Hai Tahd (Armenian Cause) across successive decades.
Vrejoohie was devoted to her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and husband. She was deeply committed to their dreams, career aspirations and endeavors. Her consistent guidance was always to look forward and conquer opportunities in life with strong principles, determination, optimism and faith.