Gerard Cafesjian, Philanthropist, PTC #33 Savior…
From West Publishing Legal Editor and businessman – to world-wide philanthropist who founded the Cafesjian Family Foundation (CFF), the Cafesjian Museum Foundation (CMF) and the Cafesjian Center for the Arts. Mr. Cafesjian was also the driving force behind saving the historic 1914 PTC #33 Minnesota State Fair carousel, now Cafesjian’s Carousel at Como Park in St. Paul, MN.
By Elizabeth Mohr, emohr@pioneerpress.com
Courtesy of Pioneer Press Twincities.com
Gerard Leon Cafesjian, the benefactor who helped save the famed Como Park PTC 33 carousel, has passed away, according to Armenian news reports.
Cafesjian amassed his wealth as an executive at West Publishing, where he worked from 1952 until 1996. His philanthropic pursuits went well beyond the salvage and restoration of the Cafesjian Carousel, as it’s now known. He also founded the Cafesjian Family Foundation, the Cafesjian Museum Foundation and the Cafesjian Center for the Arts.
Cafesjian, 88, formerly of Roseville, had retired and was living in Naples, Florida.
Messages for family members were not immediately returned Tuesday. Cafesjian’s attorney said he was not authorized to speak on behalf of the family. A woman who answered the phone at the Cafesjian Family Foundation said no one there was taking media calls.
Several Armenian news outlets were reporting Cafesjian’s death Tuesday. Some said Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan had issued a message of condolence to Cafesjian’s family.
Cafesjian was born in 1925 in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Armenian parents who immigrated to the United States in 1915, according to a biography on the Cafesjian Center for the Arts website. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and later earned a degree in economics from Hunter College and a law degree from St. John’s University Law School. He began working for West Publishing in New York City and later was transferred to the St. Paul office.
In 1988, Cafesjian led an effort to save a 1914 merry-go-round that had spun at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds for 75 years. He and others contributed more than $2 million to save the 68-horse carousel from being broken up and auctioned off.
The Cafesjian Carousel, which was named in honor of its major benefactor, was restored and initially installed in Town Square in downtown St. Paul.
“I knew it was worth saving and had to be saved,” Cafesjian told the Pioneer Press in 1990, just days before the refurbished carousel was set to make its public debut.
“We can all be proud of the way everybody got behind it.”
When the carousel was unveiled, Cafesjian reportedly bought 100 tickets to give away to children who wanted to ride it and sat on a park bench to observe the event.
“I can’t think of getting more pleasure per dollar than what I’ve gotten already,” Cafesjian said at the time.
The carousel was moved to storage in 1996 and found its permanent home in Como Park in 2000.
Through his philanthropic organizations, Cafesjian sought to bring economic relief and artistic venues to Armenia and to promote Armenian art and history to the rest of the world.
He was most recently mentioned in local news in August when one of his former employees was indicted on federal fraud charges, accused of embezzling millions of dollars from Cafesjian and his companies.
Cafesjian’s wife, Cleo, died in March. The couple met during WWII and were married in July 1947. At the time of Cleo’s death, they had two adult children, one granddaughter and three great-grandchildren.
Read more about Mr. Gerard Cafesjian on Wikipedia
Learn more about
The Cafesjian Family Foundation
U.S. based grant maker dedicated to Armenian-oriented philanthropy
Visit PTC #33 – Cafesjian’s Carousel Onine at www.ourfaircarousel.org
