A Tribute to my Dad, Peter Bilezikian (August 7, 1912 - March 24, 2010)

A Tribute to my Dad, Peter Bilezikian (August 7, 1912  -  March 24, 2010)

by Martha Bilezikian McCool

Life is all about choices . . . how we choose to live our life coupled with the goals and standards we set forth, in order to achieve our dream.  Today, I would like to share a few things about the way our Dad definitely followed his dream and enjoyed the trip.
Daddy, who many of you know as Uncle Peter, Pete, Peter Bilezikian, or simply Mr. B, was a very kind, caring, and thoughtful man.   Throughout his 97 and a half years of life, Bethel, James, and I (along with his many friends) can reflect and acknowledge that it was what he had continued to do unselfishly for others that gave him many of his greatest satisfactions. 
 Daddy had always been very strong and independent like the American Cowboy, and he had the perseverance that we all deeply admire.   Daddy married our mom, Jennie, the woman of his dreams, and he was always true to his wife, his children, his family, his mother and father, and his brothers and sisters.  Daddy was always there to lend a helping hand to his relatives, friends and neighbors.   And, customers who didn’t have enough money to pay for the work were never billed.  Throughout the years, many of his customers, neighbors, and acquaintances often became his very close friends.
 Even though life was not always easy for Dad, his faith in God and Jesus Christ sustained him throughout the most difficult periods.  Our Dad was always warm, friendly, and upbeat.  Yes, charm and leadership were among Dad’s strengths.  As a teen, he knew how to work hard, make friends, and accomplish and build up so much from nothing.  For those of you who have known my Dad over the years, you of course, realize that he rarely took credit for being the instrumental and driving force in so many successful ventures and accomplishments.  Beginning with nothing but perseverance, talent, and hard work, Dad was primarily the instrumental force in the expansion and construction of Newtonville Electrical Company Inc., located on Newtonville Ave. in Newtonville, Mass.  He and his brother built their successful 50 year business and livelihood from the ground up.
 Although Dad was born an American citizen of Armenian decent**, he was not born in America.   He embraced the American way of life and made many positive contributions to it.  When Daddy graduated from high school,  it was the depression and he had to work very hard to support his parents and his sisters by taking on many jobs and working very long hours.  Despite the fact that he  was unable to accept the full scholarship he had been awarded for MIT,  he was extremely well read,  intelligent, and knowledgeable . . .  he was a self-educated man!   Through his love of reading and relating, and his talent for being extremely creative,  Daddy built up a successful business,  married the woman of his dreams and he provided the best for his family, making sure that they all went to college and graduate school (even though in those days, the old timers would tell him not to waste his money educating his daughters)!
As many of you know, Daddy brought a lot of passion to whatever captured his interest . . . whether it was his  wood working projects, his weekly fishing trips with his children and grandchildren, his lively philosophical / ideological / discussions at the Sunday dinner table, his wonderful garden with the huge sweet tomatoes and delicious Armenian cucumbers,  his heated backgammon games with the dice crashing and the yelling out of scores, or his love of music and his frequent efforts to learn to play his favorite hymns on the piano  . . . he did it all with gusto!  And he instilled in so many that he came in contact with, to aim high and that it is not only a pleasure but a privilege to be able to work.  Being able, whatever your gift is, find it and be productive; in that way he would say that you become part of the solution.
 Looking back over the years, I truly believe that Dad has followed these 8 rules for successful living:
1.   Never wait.  You are in charge of your life and your career, with God’s help.
2.      Like what you do . . . Look for the positives in every situation.  Play the hand you’re dealt.
3.     Stay connected . . . Develop and nurture relationships
4.      Practice free speech . . . Communicate all the time.
5.      Get over it . . . Try not to dwell on the past.
6.     Develop your funny bone . . . Lighten up, loosen up and laugh.
7.     Swim upstream and aim high . . . Strengthen your backbone . . . do the right thing when it’s not easy or popular.
8.     And most importantly, develop the abilities God has given each of us.
For those of you who knew our Dad very well, you knew he privately took to heart his own advice.  One more word that describes Daddy is gratefulness.  When you’re grateful for the good things in your life, you can give of yourself to other people.
I credit our parents for making certain that we knew about our Armenian heritage and instilling in us the work ethic.  Mom and Dad never doubted that if we wanted to do something that we could do it.  And all of our children and grand-children understand that they also have choices in life.  Our parents always  encouraged us to follow our dream and work hard at it. 
Yes, life is all about choices and how we live our life to achieve the dream.  Today I   salute my father, Peter Bilezikian, and thank him  for everything!   Daddy, you will be greatly missed, but I know you are happy in heaven with our mom Jennie, and my daughter, your grand-daughter Katie. 
 Martha M.  McCool
*This was a family church that we grew up in (and was built by our ancestors with their own labor and their meager financial resources . . . which included my grandmother’s wedding ring).  Our great-uncle [The Rev. Vartan Bilezikian] was the first pastor of this church (originally named “United Armenian Brethren Evangelical Church of Watertown”).  Going further back, Peter Bilezikian’s grandfather (The Rev. Sarkis Bilezikian) was the minister of the very first Protestant Church in Marash.His son, Vartan Bilezikian in the tradition of Sarkis, became a minister and had a congregation in South Boston (first held in the home of Vartan, who had a 2nd floor apt. on Mass Ave in the south end of Boston.  The original  congregation of this church were all survivors of the Armenian Genocide of 1915 perpetrated by the Ottoman government.

**Dad (with his mother and siblings) arrived in NYC in 1920 after being forced to leave Marash, surviving the genocide.    Because my Grandfather (Moses Bilezikian) who was born in Marash in 1865, came to America in 1885, and was soon after granted U.S. Citizenship, my Dad, his mom and siblings did not have to go through Ellis Island.  

Above is the Eulogy written and read by Martha Bilezikian McCool for her Dad, at the  Memorial Service  for Armenian Genocide Survivor  Peter Bilezikian on Saturday, March 27th,  2010, at the Watertown Evangelical Church (formerly the United Armenian Bretheren Evangelical Church) of Watertown, MA.