Western Diocese

With deep sorrow, we inform the entire Western Diocese of the passing of Mr. John M. Bozajian, Member of the Western Diocese Endowment Fund. Mr. John M. Bozajian, as a member of the WDEF, was entrusted with the responsibilities of managing the Fund, making judicious investments, allocating the proceeds according to the wishes of donors, and ensuring that the Fund serves the purpose for which it was created. A biographical piece about Mr. John M. Bozajian is included below in this page.

The Home Service for Mr. John M. Bozajian will take place on Thursday, December 17, 2009, 10:00 AM, at St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Church in Pasadena. His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate, assisted by the Diocesan Clergy will officiate over the service, followed by interment.

We pray to the Lord to accept this outstanding and wonderful servant of the Church in His Heavenly Kingdom. May God comfort and console his wife Alice Rachel Bozajian, children all who are mourning his passing.

JOHN M. BOZAJIAN

John M. Bozajian served as an advisor on the Board of Trustees of the Western Diocese Endowment Fund.  He was a hometown boy, one of those rare specimens born, raised and lived in Los Angeles until his passing.  He was an engineer by profession, musician by inclination and a tax expert by choice, with plenty of room and enthusiasm left for other activities that come by.

Bozajian remembered fondly his teacher, Marshall Chashoudian, who had sparked his young imagination to "lessons in life beyond music and violin."  In high school, he studied harmony and composed music, but was or interested in writing musical arrangements and as a band organizer.  At church he was drawn to the Choir, particularly because of the richness of Armenian hymns, accentuated under the direction of the then talented choirmaster, Zaruhi Elmassian Vartian.  His above average ability in music won him a first prize in playing the violin at an Armenian Allied Arts Association competition.  He was advised to major in Music at college, but the career prognostics in that area were not very bright.  He opted for Engineering and, during World War II, he enlisted in the military, notwithstanding his young age, thus shifting gears to technology.

Bozajian continued his technical education, after service/education in the military, earning a BS from the University of California, Berkeley and an MS from the California Institute of Technology, in Mechanical Engineering.  He married Alice Rachel Bogosian and they were blessed with three sons.

During his long career at Hughes Aircraft Company, Bozajian headed several departments and worked on projects skirting the borderlines of science.  He earned, among others, the title of Master Designer by Product Engineering Magazine for 1969, and the Distinguished Public Service Medal by NASA in 1980, the highest medal that is given to a civilian, for his contributions to the Pioneer Venus Program.  On the sidelines, the entrepreneur in him was busy co-organizing investment and real estate partnerships during the 1970's and early 1980's.  His background in harmony and musical arrangements must had served him well in bringing concerted efforts to fine accomplishments.  In fact, establishing realistic goals and achieving them was Bozajian's vision of success.

Bozajian's long involvement in church activities was a natural evolution stemming from family roots.  In 1941, his parents were Charter Members of St. James Church in Los Angeles.  He joined the Church Choir in 1942, became a member and chair of St. James Jr., co-organized the Mr. and Mrs. Club in 1951 and served as Chair; proceeded to be a member of the Parish Council, Secretary then Chair; later evolved to Parish Assembly Chair and Diocesan Delegates; served on the Western Diocesan Council, chaired it for four years, and served on various committees; chaired the Diocesan Assembly.  He was then nominated to the Board of the Western Diocese Endowment Fund.  In December 1993, Bozajian was awarded an Encyclical and the St. Nersess Medal from His Holiness Vazken I, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, for his devoted services to the Armenian Church.

At the community level, Bozajian's memberships covered a wide span.  By profession he was a member of the Institute of Aeronautics and Astronauts.  By a vocation, he was a member of the Knights of Vartan, AGBU, the Armenian Assembly and Ararat Home, the latter for life.  These involvements would not have been possible without the influence of his parents and the support of his wife Rachel throughout, for help, guidance and valuable exchange of opinions.

Certain influential people impact our lives and the shaping of our career beyond its regular course.  Bozajian grew up in the depression era and much admired President Franklin Roosevelt's leadership style, which gave the nation visions of hope and resurrection.  Joe Blann, his High School teacher, opened his impressionable mind to science and technology and was instrumental in shifting his career, whereas Richard Feynman, the Nobel Laureate and his Caltech Physics Professor, imparted in elegant simplicity and brilliance the solutions to complex scientific problems, sparking creativity and enthusiasm beyond the ordinary reach. 

His concept for community service was:  "to sustain and/or advance services or benefits to a segment of the public without the expectation of any extraordinary financial reward."  For individuals like Bozajian, the emotional rewards reaped far outweigh the services rendered.