When the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Catholic Church scaled back a milestone anniversary fundraiser due to the recent wildfires, a familiar Pasadena name filled the gap. NOOR Events | Venue | Catering prepared meals and utilized its staff so the parish could celebrate its 75th year on church grounds rather than at the gala it had originally envisioned.
“ABVM Catholic Church hosted their fundraiser gala at NOOR several years ago, and earlier this year they reached out to let me know that they would be hosting their 75th Anniversary at their church because a lot of their parishioners lost their home due to the wildfires,” said Robert Shahnazarian, managing partner and general manager of NOOR.
“I immediately let them know that they can count us to participate. We donated food and staff for 300 people to help make it a wonderful celebration of the church’s role in the community for the past 75 years.”
The turnout exceeded expectations: more than 700 people came to the church to mark the milestone.
The congregation is led by Father Ume, originally from Nigeria. Meeting the priest, Shahnazarian said, was galvanizing—“you could see just joy and love emanating from this person. He’s a truly spiritual person that cares about the community.”
Since opening its doors in 2010, NOOR has woven community partnership into its identity. The company regularly donates catering services to nonprofits, schools, and churches. During the pandemic, NOOR provided nutritious “Meals-To-Go” to any community member that came showed up to our weekly meal distribution. Immediately after the devastating January wildfires, NOOR prepared and served meals to people sheltering at the Pasadena Convention Center for three days, stepping in until World Central Kitchen took over.
“For us, community support isn’t an afterthought—it’s in our DNA,” said Shahnazarian. “Pasadena has supported us for over 15 years, and we have an obligation to give back. Whether it’s a celebration, fundraiser, or an emergency, we want to be there when our neighbors need us.”
From its location in downtown Pasadena—across from Pasadena’s Civic Auditorium, public library, and City Hall—NOOR has become the backdrop for countless personal and civic milestones. Weddings, graduations, anniversaries, and now a church’s 75th jubilee have all found a home under NOOR’s roof—or, in this case, with NOOR’s helping hands.
“The community, city officials, and non-profit organizations have supported us since day one and we in turn, support the community. It’s as simple as that,” he said. “They host many of their milestone events at NOOR, whether it’s a wedding, meeting, fundraising gala, birthday or anniversary celebration, and we’re now indelibly woven into the fabric of the community in Pasadena.”
For NOOR, the parish gathering doubled as a reminder of why those commitments matter. As Shahnazarian put it, “when you turn off the news and social media and just be a contributing member of the community, you see how beautiful people are and how wonderful this community we live and work in really is.”
My hope, he added, is straightforward: “we’re a true community partner and hopefully our actions inspire others to be involved however they can.”
