Dr.Garo Mirigian was born and raised in San Francisco, the younger of two children of a Ashod and Lucy Mirigian. He began piano lessons at age 4, following his older sister Sonia’s musical example with her violin. By his junior year of high school, Garo had already earned his first college degree from Trinity College at Oxford (in music). After high school, Garo went on to graduate from college with a BS degree in Social Sciences (International Relations and Foreign Policy Development), a Masters degree in Education and his Doctorate in Educational Renewal and Leadership. Garo taught both social studies and performing arts in public schools, before

becoming a school administrator. Upon his retirement after 40 years, he re-entered education, this time serving as a professor and credentials director for National University, until his final retirement in 2022. Garo has been married to his wonderful wife Aida for 57 years, and has two daughters - Melina and Lara, and their families. He and his wife have been AEF members since 1995, and have both renovated a school in Lorut, and have sponsored scholarship students in both Armenia and Javakhk. Since moving to SoCal in 2022, Garo has taken a more active role with AEF, currently serving his second year on the Board of Directors.