New $10,000 EMPOW Awards Drive a Movement of Meaningful Christian Media

The Armenian Christian community in the U.S. is on the brink of transformation, and one of  the most exciting catalysts is the New $10,000 EMPOW Awards from Khachkar Studios.  These monthly (and potentially weekly) honors are more than just recognition—they’re a  movement. 

Awarding $250,000 in 2025, Khachkar Studios is looking to uplift creators of “Good News”  content that delivers impact and insight. Eligible submissions include everything from  sermons and podcasts to AI-enhanced short videos, all evaluated using the five EMPOW  pillars: Engaging, Motivational, Powerful, Originality, and Wisdom. 

But beyond quality and creativity, the awards are tightly linked to mission. With only 3% of  U.S. Armenians regularly attending Badarak, Khachkar Studios has set a bold goal to double  that figure. These awards are one of the tools being used to get there. 

This is media with a measurable purpose. Khachkar Studios’ unique take on philanthropy— where Social Return on Investment is calculated in souls reached—brings a sharp, effective  edge to its spiritual mission. 

Khachkar Studios is also setting a new standard in distribution. Awarded media won’t be  hidden away. It will be promoted widely, ensuring that these voices reach new ears. The top  percentile will even serve as educational resources to mentor and multiply the next  generation of Christian role models. 

Historically, philanthropic support for Armenian religious life has been sparse. Less than 2%  of major foundations’ giving went toward faith-based initiatives over the last 20 years. The  EMPOW Awards confront this disparity head-on, fueling a long-overdue renaissance in  Armenian Christian expression. 

Guided by the Parable of the Talents, Khachkar Studios sees its resources as sacred trust,  meant to be used wisely and multiplied for greater good. 

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1. Khachkar Studios EMPOW Awards: Starting in June 2025, Khachkar Studios will grant $10,000 EMPOW (pronounced “M-pow”) Awards for Empowering Armenian Christian media. $250,000 is allocated for 2025 EMPOW  Awards from the Khachkar Studios’ historically unprecedented $10+ million “Good News” support to increase the  number of Armenian Faithful in the U.S. The $10,000 EMPOW Awards will be for “Good News” Armenian Christian  media, including homilies, AI short-clips, and podcasts. Khachkar Studios hopes to grant the awards at least monthly  and potentially weekly. Awardees may receive multiple EMPOW Awards. 

2. EMPOW Five Traits: Awards will be based on five traits, which are referred to as EMPOW: E - Engaging, M - Motivational, P - Powerful, O - Originality, and W - Wisdom. 

3. US$10+ Million Support: The EMPOW Awards are part of Khachkar Studios’ historically unprecedented US$10+  million support for U.S. Armenian Pilot Churches and Ministries announced on 11 April 2025, which includes a focus on  “Good News” Armenian Christian media. The $10,000 EMPOW Awards are supplemental to the $40,000 to $80,000 per  church or ministry from the 8 Activities in the Pilot Menu. To learn more about the Khachkar Studios “Good News” Pilot, see the press release, podcast, and Briefing Packet #2: Pilots at https://khachkarstudios.com/pilot-menu/. 

4. Parable of the Talents: We at Khachkar Studios are guided in allocating our resources by the parable of the talents:  "Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with  more." 

5. Sharing the “Good News”: Khachkar Studios will place award-winning Armenian Christian media on multiple news  outlets and social media platforms. The top percentile of award winners will be included in instructional videos for  Armenian Christian role models.  

6. SROI and KPI #1: At Khachkar Studios, our Social Return on Investment (SROI) is defined as the increase in Key  Performance Indicator #1 (KPI #1) – number of Non-Holiday Badarak Faithful (“The Faithful”) – divided by the total  investment. Currently, barely 3% of Armenians in the U.S. are Faithful, and Khachkar Studios’ near-term goal is to see  that increase to 6%. 

7. Ecosystem Benchmarking: From an ecosystem benchmarking perspective, Khachkar Studios and its affiliates are  projected to spend far greater than 200% more in supporting Armenian Church activities than iconic figures such as  Mantashyants, Gulbenkian, Manoogian, Kerkorian, or Hovnanian – combined. During the past 23 years (2001 to 2023),  the major U.S. Armenian philanthropists’ foundations contributed only 2% of their $825 million total spending to  Armenian religious initiatives, as reported in their U.S. 990 tax filings. This near-negligible percentage represents one of  the 12 body parts in an Ecosystem that is currently underperforming – yet gifted with extraordinary potential – where the  reality is that barely 3% of U.S. Armenians are Faithful. See Briefing Packet #3: EMPOW Awards at  https://khachkarstudios.com/Empow-Briefing-Packet/. 

8. About Khachkar Studios: Khachkar Studios is a multimedia studio that empowers Christian role models through  “Good News” education-training-retention (E-T-R), guided by world-class benchmarking and management excellence.  Khachkar Studios is an affiliate of the Charles & Agnes Kazarian Foundation, JI-Analytics, and Japonica Partners. 

For more information about Khachkar Studios and its initiatives, including EMPOW Award nominations, contact: www.khachkarstudios.com  

goodnews@khachkarstudios.com