Arew Hratchian's Obituary
Arew Hratchian, born November 8, 1918 in Yerevan, Armenia, died Sunday, July 4th at the home of her daughter, surrounded by her children. Arew was a loving, caring mother who always put her family first.
Arew lived an extraordinary life. She spent her childhood in Armenia, and her early twenties in Eastern and Western Europe. In 1948, after the end of WWII, she re-connected with her fiancé, Harutun Hratchian in Marseille, France, where the two were married. With two young sons, they boarded the Queen Elizabeth to New York Harbor in December 1951, and eventually made their way to St. Clair in 1954.
Arew quickly established herself in the area as a talented seamstress, altering beautiful dresses, coats and suits for the men and women of the community. She also taught Russian in the Adult Education Program at St. Clair County Community College during the 1960's. From 1965 until her retirement in 1990, she worked proudly and tirelessly at River District Hospital, compassionately caring for thousands of patients and building treasured friendships.
For fifty years, Arew watched over her neighborhood, raising her three children and looking after their friends. A generation later, Tatik as she was known to her grandsons, was often home base before and after school.
Her home was framed with roses, and when she wasn’t tending to the flowers, she was filling the house with the sweet aroma of homemade Armenian pastries. With pride, she shared her delicious Paklava and Gatta with neighbors, friends and co-workers. Never a driver, she let her heels carry her down the 3rd Street hill to tend to her daily needs and to chat with the women at Dancers.
Arew is survived by her loving children, Ararat, Hrant and Michelle, Vartush and Bob Platzer; her grandchildren, Hrant and Michelle, Armen and Emily; great granddaughters, Hannah, Abby, and Grace; and her sister Astghik Kilikian. She was preceded in death by her son, Haik in 1963, her husband Harutun in 2008, and her siblings Eprat, Lusin, and Tigris Kilikian.
Our family extends a very special thank-you to her loving caregivers, Patty Neil, Nancy Wolff, Marlene Brinker, Jean Riedel, Donna Barks and Diane Liebetreu, who made it possible for Arew to fulfill her wish of spending the last years of her beautiful life in her own home in St. Clair. Their compassionate care of our dear, sweet mother and grandmother will always remain in our hearts.
Visitation will be 2 - 5 PM and 7 – 9 PM Tuesday. Funeral services will be held at 12:00 AM, Wednesday, July 7, 2010, in Friederichs and Son Funeral Home, by the Honorable Reverend Daron Stepanian from St. Sarkis Armenian Apostolic Church of Dearborn.
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