A Colorful Story by Aylin Tashman Kim As a first-generation American born and raised in Arizona, I always longed for my extended family and waited for summer when I would travel to Istanbul to see my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. I envied my school friends who grew up close to their relatives and shared…
A Colorful Story by Nick Porcaro Nearing retirement, I had for a number of years felt the need to give back for the opportunities I have had. In 2007 a Special-Needs High School in Massachusetts had been trying to expand their campus without success due to design and budget constraints. I offered to donate my…
A Colorful Story by Nakiye A. Boyacıgiller, Ph.D. Two years ago I lost the love of my life, my husband of 39 years (sweetheart for 43), Ziya G. Boyacıgiller. When our friends at TPF asked me to write about Ziya, a founding partner and board member of the organization, I hesitated. How should I describe…
A Colorful Story by Amber Deniz Kale It was my 30th interview. After studying art in college and media in grad school, I still wasn’t sure what I wanted to do in life. So instead of focusing on finding a job, any job, like most of my peers did, I decided to take some time…
A Colorful Story by Ozlem Solu Would you believe that my life changed on an airplane? It was just like in the movies. I was flying to the States for the first time in my life to visit my son, Deren who was studying at Washburn University in Kansas. It was a long flight and…
A Colorful Story by NC Murthy As a very active businessman in his late fifties, I can easily say that I’ve been through a great deal in my life. But when I think of it, none of the things I have been through have challenged me as much as writing this story- the story of…
A Colorful Story by Ali Üstay I met Andre at a dorm room over half a century ago. It was 1960 when we set our feet in Robert College as two 19-year-old freshmen. We were both placed to reside in Hamlin Hall. Soon after deciding who is sleeping in which bed, our dormitory became our…
A Colorful Story by Bercem Akkoç Alemdarzade Growing up, unlike most of my friends I never embraced a book character like Jane Eyre or Elizabeth Bennett as my hero. Instead, I had my mom, Nebahat Akkoç, and her entourage as my heroes as they mesmerized me with their courage and strength. They were a handful of women…
A Colorful Story by Hülya Koç They say birds of the same feather flock together. I believe that’s why my husband Aydin and I developed a productive rapport and strong personal feelings for each other very quickly after being introduced by family members when we were in our twenties. We were both energetic, hard working…
A Colorful Story by Özgür Karaosmanoğlu As I grow older, I often find myself thinking about my parents and how blessed I am to have them. My parents taught me that the key to a happy life comes from working hard, being fair and giving back to those in need. It’s these virtues they passionately…