TURYAK Awards Three Turkish-American Activists

USA recipients of the TURYAK awards Ozcan Tuncel, Oya Bain, Ergun Kırlıkovalı at the Awards ceremony on Saturday September 29, 2018 in Istanbul USA recipients of the TURYAK awards Ozcan Tuncel, Oya Bain, Ergun Kırlıkovalı at the Awards ceremony on Saturday September 29, 2018 in Istanbul

Three long time Turkish American activists  have been awarded  TURYAK  Exemplary Senior Citizen Award. TURYAK stands  Turk  Yaslilik Konseyi  which translates into Turkish Senior Citizens Council. Established in 2003, TURYAK is a member of International Federation on Aging. TURYAK gives awards to outstanding senior citizens  in Turkey and also in U.S., Germany, England and Australia where there is sizable Turkish immigrant presence. Oya Bain TASC Secretary General, is a retired biochemist  who held leadership positions in  clinical pathology laboratories. She retired from Georgetown University Hospital as the technical director of the Clinical Pathology Department of Laboratory Medicine.


Since 1960 when she arrived to the US as a Fulbright scholar  to do post graduate work in biochemistry she has been closely involved in the activities of the Turkish American communities and held key positions on the boards of many local and national Turkish American organizations. Oya Bain as the member of recently formed Turkısh American Steering Committee (TASC) strives for unity among the different factions of the Turkish American community with the aim of having a united voice on foreign policy issues that are vital to the Turkish American community and Turkey itself.

Ergun Kırlıkovalı former TASC Trustee is a polymer chemist and the founder of a pioneering firm developing polymer products in construction, defense and space industries. Kırlıkovalı has been a tireless and  outstanding activist in the Turkish American community and has held leadership positions in major Turkish American organizations since his arrival to the U.S . He is well known for his powerful writing style and penned close to 5000 letters over the years, advocating Turkish American causes.

Ozcan Tuncel is an electrical engineer and one of founding members of the Assembly of Turkish American Associations (ATAA). He has published an autobiographical book about his life and success  in the U.S. (Please look up the name of his book -I cant for some reason..)

Last modified onFriday, 05 October 2018 16:58