Continuing on your Family's Legacy
When Nezahat Neziroğlu passed away in 2021 , her daughter, Fügen, wanted to find an organization that will assist her and her sister with donations that honors her late mother. Since she was familiar with the work of TPF and enjoyed working with the team there, she reached out to identify programs that will continue to fulfill her mother’s dream of building a pathway to higher education for female students. She believes TPF has so many avenues and connections that make the joy of giving easy. “Whatever your passion is, there is an organization that they work with that can fit your interest. It is a unique organization in that it is like an octopus with so many hands out in many diverse directions. Their programs are varied, and they can fit the needs of many people,” she notes. She knew TPF was the right partner.
When Fügen was growing up, she experienced her parents supporting two new students every year from their community. Their contributions enabled those students to continue their education from middle-school through college, making sure they were not held back from their dreams due to financial burdens. Fügen believes observing her parents giving back so generously to their community and experiencing the joy it brought to her family made her the person she is today. “Ever since I can remember, my parents have given to others. They strongly supported Turkish causes, primarily education and particularly young disadvantaged children. They helped support the education of many children over the years.” Fügen recalls how both of her parents always asked her, ‘If something happens to us, will you continue to support the children we are supporting?’ For Fügen, continuing the support was no question. She was taught early on the importance of education, especially equal and quality education, and continuing her family’s legacy through investing in education was already something she planned to do. After her mother passed away as she reminisced on her childhood, she once again saw the impact and importance of her family’s generosity, and was determined to carry out her family’s legacy.
Dr. Fügen Neziroğlu is a behavior and cognitive psychologist, and a leading researcher on anxiety disorders. Fügen sees her own professional and personal journey so intertwined with philanthropy. She received the prestigious lifetime achievement award from the International Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Foundation (IOCDF) in 2016. She calls the award philanthropic because she has devoted many hours weekly to research without funding. “My mission is to alleviate the suffering of others within my capacity and to promote caring and compassion for others,” she says. And, that is very visible in all of her actions in life. “My journey is based on my difficulty dealing with vulnerability and my need to alleviate it. If we are deprived of the basics of life: shelter, food, and water and lack basic opportunities like health and education, then we are vulnerable. When we are vulnerable, we cannot fend for ourselves, and it is hard to create a loving, kind society/ universe when basic needs are not met,” she adds when discussing her philanthropic journey.
Today Fügen gives scholarships to three students, two of which are students her parents were supporting. She also partners with TPF to support a number of projects honoring her later mother’s dream and legacy, including a women empowerment program and a relief fund for refugees. Her help in educating children in Türkiye and carrying on her parents’ legacy has been a complement to everything she has done in her life. “The knowledge that they can succeed and pursue their dreams when otherwise they might not have been is extremely gratifying,” she notes.
Fügen cannot think of giving up the meaningful work her parents had done, the opportunities they created for others, and the values they taught her and her sister, Tijen. Those acts of kindness became who she is. Her parents’ stories are now combined with her own - her mother volunteering her time and her father creating opportunities for others who did not have them. “I firmly believe that giving a gift to others, to one’s community makes for a better universe.” And, she cannot think of any other way to live her life.