GLENDALE, Calif. — A sweet taste of the homeland is just enough motivation to keep the ambition alive.

That’s the focus of Papillon Bakery owner, Jack Torosian. The Armenian American immigrated to California as a teenager, but the perks of tasting his baked goods didn’t come over night.

In fact, he fled from the very conflict that Armenia faces today, in the controversial Artsakh region. The war with Azerbaijan that recently re-ignited took Torosian and his Armenian community to the streets of Los Angeles to protest.

“It was December of 1993, I remember about 26, 27 years ago, we were going through the same war as we are now. It was Azerbaijan attacking Artsakh, and everybody was going to war, and all the boys were coming in caskets, so we were going to be next so we had to leave,” Torosian explained.

Escaping the danger back home gave him a chance to build a new home here in the City of Angels, but he says he’ll never forget his roots. His five bakeries in the Los Angeles area cater not just to the largest Armenian community outside of Armenia, but also to SoCal’s diverse crowd.

His family always saw the United States as a beacon of freedom and hope.

“It was the land of the free. The land of opportunity. We wanted to be the American dream. And thats why we came,” he said.

That’s why as he has built success with his businesses, he is encouraging the next generation of Armenian Americans to understand their history, and educate others.

“It’s one of the best feelings to be walking with thousands of your own people, thousands of Americans, thousands of just good people, who are standing up for innocent people who are dying for no reason,” he emphasized.

While Russia brokered a recent deal in Artsakh that disappointed the Armenian community, Torosian says the whole crisis has taught them the power of uniting as one.