Turkish Cultural Center New Hampshire Turkish Cultural Center New Hampshire
On Monday, October 15th, at the Radisson Hotel in Manchester, Turkish Cultural Center New Hampshire (“TCC”) held its first annual “Friendship Dinner and Awards Ceremony” event. The evening was co-organized by Peace Islands Institute. There were more than one hundred attendees from different walks of life, including academics, elected officials, media representatives, artists, and public officials. The program started with dinner, followed by a speech from Yusuf Demir, Vice President of Turkish Cultural Center New Hampshire. Demir stated that the event was the first time that an event of such essence was organized by the Turkish community in New Hampshire. The program continued with a speech by Mehmet Kilic, President of Turkish Cultural Center Manhattan. Kilic talked about the mission of Turkish Cultural Center branches in the Northeast and informed guests about theactivities various branches have organized thus far. Afterwards, an introduction video of Turkish Cultural Center was screened. Representative Robert Foose, who visited Turkey a month ago during a trip organized by TCC, talked about his experiences in Turkey. Representative Foose talked about the hospitality of the Turkish people and mentioned the recent development of Turkey’s economy. He underlined that Turkey is one of the closest allies of the United States. After his speech, Dr. Ali Mustafa, Department Chair at Hesser College, presented Representative Foose with a ceramic plate reflecting Turkish art. The Award Ceremony continued with a speech by Mehmet Kalyoncu, author and political advisor. Kalyoncu talked about the contributions of the Gulen Movement to social peace and its focus on dialogue as an approach to resolving common problems of our times. After the speeches, awards were presented to three individuals who contributed to peace and dialogue. The “Community Award” was presented to New Hampshire Attorney General Michael A. Delaney, and the “Education Award” was given to New Hampshire Commissioner of Education, Dr. Virginia M. Barry. Jennifer Vaughn, author and news anchor at WMUR-TV, was awarded with the “Media Award”. Victoria Arlen, a New Hampshire native and Paralympian swimmer, was honored with Special Recognition. Victoria won one gold andthree silver medals at the 2012 Paralympics in London this year, breaking the world record in the S6 100m Freestyle. After receiving his award, Attorney General Delaney thanked Turkish Cultural Center New Hampshire and Peace Islands Institute for his award and said that this event is a benefit for the State of New Hampshire. After receiving her award, Jennifer Vaughn requested that her reservation be made for the award ceremony in the upcoming years. In an event where warm messages were exchanged, Major General William H.Reddel also expressed his gratitude for the program.
In the Press http://www.unionleader.com/article/20121016/NEWHAMPSHIRE09/710169945
