Saturday, April 27, St. John Sayat Nova Cultural Committee hosted a Celebratory and Benefit Concert to honor Rev. Fr. Mesrop Ash’s First Anniversary of his ordination to Holy priesthood. St. John Paul Family Hall was filled with parishioners from the entire Bay Area. Fr. Mesrop Ash welcomed everyone and after a prayer invited the performers to start the program.

The second Sunday following the Glorious Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is the Sunday of the World Church, also known as “Green Sunday.” It commemorates the first Church of Jerusalem established by Jesus Christ. According to Archbishop Malachia Ormanian (Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople, “Green” Sunday is linked with the awakening of nature in the springtime. On “Green Sunday,” April 14, 2013, Diocesan Primate Archbishop Hovnan Derderian paid a pastoral visit to St. John Armenian Church in San Francisco.

Nearly 50 Ladies of St. John gathered for their monthly meeting and luncheon. The theme of this luncheon was the presentation of Elise Kazanjian's essay "The Oil Stick Man." Elise Kazanjian’s award winning essay, takes place in China where she lived with her parents as a child. We are transported through the back alleys and market place where a precocious child speaks the perfect dialect of the land to the amazement of the locals.

On Thursday, April 18, the members of St. John Ladies society gathered together for their April luncheon. This luncheon was special as it would showcase the work of Mr. James Baloian, a well-known Armenian poet originally from the Central Valley. The luncheon was organized by committee chair Cecelia Baloian, who is also the poet's wife.

The 25th Anniversary of the massacres in Sumgait, which became the catalyst for the war of the independence of Nagorno-Kharabagh, St. John Armenian church offered requiem prayers on March 3, 2013.  Requiem prayers were offered in the courtyard before the memorial in memory of the victims of the massacres. The names of all those known dead were read solemnly one by one. Following the requiem service, a memorial event was held in St. John Fellowship Hall, under the organization Michael Oganessian.

On Friday night, April 12th, the families of St. John Sunday School once again gathered together for an evening of fun and fellowship. Under the guidance of Sunday School superintendent Paula Boghossian, the families each brought a food item for a potluck dinner. The main purpose for the evening's gathering was to give our young ones an opportunity to practice for their musical performance at our annual banquet.

The contest for Choreg and Simit organized by St. John Ladies Society, took place on Easter Sunday, March 31, during Fellowship Hour. 

Our judges: Angel Ailanjian, Sima Kouyoumdjian Kesecker and Amelia Surabian had a difficult task to choose from all the delicious entries. All entries were blind, and they had to rate each entry on taste, texture, moisture, overall appearance and "would you buy this product?"

The judges choices are as follows:

Holy Week is the climactic journey of the faithful in preparation of the miraculous resurrection of Jesus Christ. Come and participate in the truly special rites of the Armenian Church, and embark on your own journey with Christ.

On February 24th, Tigran Antonian, Carmen Kestekyan, and Naryne Sarkiss presented “Greetings from Armenia: An Afternoon of Pictures and Stories”.  The Church hall was filled with parishioners eager to hear about the experiences of these three young adults in Armenia for a month through the CYMA program.  A slide show presentation highlighted points of interest on the trip to Armenia.

On Thursday, February 28, his Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian visited the community of St. John Armenian Church of San Francisco.