Senekerim Arakelian

Senekerim "Sam" Arakelian (May 1, 1902 – September 9, 2000) was an Armenian-American, a survivor of the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust, and the last surviving Armenian veteran of World War I. 

 Early Life 
Senekerim was born to an Armenian family in Erzurum in the Ottoman Empire. He was forced to leave Armenia during World War I. He was 13 years old during the Armenian Genocide and saw his father and uncle killed.

 World War I 
When Senekerim was 16 years old, he joined the Armenian Army in 1918 and was involved in the Battle of Sardarapat.Agreed belligerent status at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919.

 Post War 
After his military service, he continued to live in Armenia until World War II, when he was captured by Nazi forces and taken to a concentration camp in Stuttgart with his wife and daughter. They survived and immigrated to the Montebello, California in 1957. He lived in Montebello until his death in 2000, aged 98. In April 2013, an exhibition has held in the city to honor Armenians who were survivors of the genocide. Among the visitors was Jack Hajinian, the grandson of Senekerim and a city councilman.

 References 

Category:Armenian people
Category:Armenian genocide survivors
Category:1902 births
Category:2000 deaths
Category:Armenian emigrants to the United States
Category:20th-century Armenian military personnel
Category:Holocaust survivors
Category:Military personnel of World War I