Turkish Cultural Center Vermont Turkish Cultural Center Vermont
Vermont governor Peter Shumlin, speaker of the House of Representatives Shap Smith, Consul General of Turkey in Boston Murat Lutem, Mayor of Burlington Miro Weinberger, the president of TAA Faruk Taban, the president of CTAA Furkan Kosar, the president of Turkish Cultural Center Vermont, TABID New England Board Members, a delegation from ATILIM Businessmen Association of Istanbul, Vermont state senators, and representatives were among those who attended the first Turkish Cultural Day in Vermont State House.
The event included a keynote speech by Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin, remarks given by senators and representatives, multimedia presentation about Turkey, live Ebru-art (marbling) demonstration, Sema cialis lowest price canada (Whirling Dervish) performance, Qanun recital and display of Turkish art and photos.
“We would like to improve our cultural, economic and educational relations with Turkey,” said Governor Shumlin. “Turkish-Americans are well educated, hard-working and very successful in business, education and other fields. I http://sosbeachkeepers.org/iaim-viagra-in-prague/ am pleased to see Turkish businessmen visiting Vermont.” Governor Shumlin also met with Ahiskan Turks who live in Vermont and took pictures with each of them. Mr. Shumlim made sure to pose with Ihsan Akgul who was wearing a Padishah costume.
At the end of his speech, Governor Shumlin declared April 18, 2012 as Turkish Cultural Day in Vermont with a Proclamation stating “Vermont recognizes the positive impact of the Turkish-American community upon the social, cultural and economic development of our state and nation …”
“Turkey is a rising star and the Turkish-American relations are getting better every day,” said Murat Lutem, Consul General of Turkey in Boston. “I would like to invite all members of Vermont State Senate and House of Representatives.”
Latif Adali gave remarks on behalf of ATILIM Businessmen Association. Mr. Adali said “We are pleased to visit this beautiful state and meet with great people of Vermont. In addition to this pleasant cultural exchange, we have come here to investigate future business and investment opportunities.” Mr. Adali said that we would be holding meetings with Chamber of Commerce, Department of Finance and Management as part of our feasibility study in the area with regards to our business objectives. The delegation has also presented an invitation letter from Mayor of Umraniye Hasan Can to Mayor of Burlington Miro Weinberger to visit Turkey and launch a sister city project between City of Burlington, Vermont and City of Umraniye, Istanbul.
Prior to his meeting with the delegation, Mayor Weinberger gave a short remark to thank the organizers and expressed his support to the http://thefaym.org/flazol-0a/ efforts put by the TCC Vermont in promoting the area. Mayor Weinberger expressed his gratitude to the delegation and emphasized the importance of viagra free samples packs economic, cultural and educational relations between two cities. Mayor Weinberger was presented with a souvenir by Mr. Adali.
“I would like to thank Turkish Cultural Center Vermont for organizing this great event and looking forward to visiting Turkey soon” said House Speaker Shap Smith who was presented with an Ebru-art as a gift. “I am going to hang this Framed Ebru-art on my office wall.”
One of the highlights of the event was the remarks made by Sen. Hinda Miller regarding her recent visit to Turkey and her impressions. “It was amazing to see Mosque, Church and Synagogue had been standing almost next to each other for many centuries,” said Sen. Miller. “I love the food, culture and especially the people. My visit to Turkey has inspired me to share my experience in a book to be released soon.” Sen. Miller said to all Turkish-Americans present that I am your senator; you can always come to me with your questions and concerns.
“There are around five thousand Turkic-American living in Vermont,” said Rep. Kesha Ram who personally helped with the organization of the event. “I enjoyed today’s event, especially the Sema, Sufi music and Ebru. I am excited to learn more about Turkish culture.”
Semazen (Whirling Dervish) Taha Calisir entertained the guests with his mesmerizing Sema (whirling) show and Qanun recital.
Ebru (marbling) artist Humeyra Ozcan demonstrated her mastery in marbling and gave away her masterpieces as souvenirs to the governor, senators and representatives. “It is a great pleasure to be able to introduce and promote our country and culture in such a wonderful venue,” said Mrs. Ozcan.
The event also included speeches by TAA Faruk Taban, CTAA Furkan Kosar as well as TCC Vermont Outreach Coordinator Adem G. Aydin. Guests enjoyed conversations with local members of Turkish-American community along with some Turkish delicacies such as Baklava and Borek.
