''House of Hope Charity Center'' Foundation

In 1988, representatives of the German Red Cross arrived in Armenia on a humanitarian mission to support our compatriots affected by the devastating Spitak earthquake.
In 1989, Gerhard Meyer was also part of the German Red Cross mountain rescue team and, from February 1989, began overseeing the work of the volunteer 'Spitak' rescue squad, which was taking the first professional steps in the field...
In 1994, Gerhard Meyer initiated a program aimed at elderly people in extreme need, starting the 'Mercy Kitchen' in Yerevan for the first 150 beneficiaries with the help of his friends' resources.
In 1995, the 'Child Nutrition' sub-program was initiated under the 'Mercy Kitchen' program with the aim of reducing the social vulnerability of children, teenagers, and girls from various at-risk groups.
In 2002, after the tragic death of Gerhard Meyer, Protestant church pastor Karl-Heinz Scheiden took over the coordination of collections for the 'Mercy Kitchen' program in Germany.
In 2003, the 'Home Care' sub-program of the 'Mercy Kitchen' was launched and has been running ever since.
In 2005, the construction of the 'House of Hope' Charitable Center building began at Dro 22/5, a location provided free of charge by the Yerevan Municipality.
Since 2006, the 'Mercy Kitchen' program has been implemented, and all charitable programs have been coordinated.
In 2017, to ensure the stability and continuity of programs, as well as to secure human, material, and financial donations locally, the 'House of Hope Charitable Center' (HTHC) foundation was established, bringing together active volunteers who had been involved in the creation and launch of the rescue squad and the First Aid system.
In 2020, the operational implementation of the 'Mercy Kitchen' program and its sub-programs by the GRC BWEC branch was transferred to the HTHC foundation.
In 2021, priests Karl-Heinz Scheiden and Alfons Wener handed over the coordination of collections in Germany and the German leadership of the 'Mercy Kitchen' program to the retired Pavel Klaus, who in turn formed a management committee consisting of 6 members (Klaus Pavel - former governor of the Ostalb district and chairman of the management committee, Christian Baron - first deputy mayor of Schwäbisch Gmünd, Robert Klocker - dean of the Catholic Church, Ursula Richter - dean of the Evangelical Church, Michael Lene - head of the editorial office of the Gmünder Tagespost newspaper, and Dr. Stefan Schefold - former member of the state parliament and former state secretary).