My father is a brave, strong and high minded man who sticks with his values and integrity like no other.  He gives me the hope and influence of being able to start from the bottom and work your way up through hard work and ambition.

It all started in a small village in Eastern Turkey. Growing up he had very little money.  His father had left to work in Germany so being the oldest, he had to be the man of the house and help out his mother and siblings. Their house was small and only had three rooms so all four kids would be scrunched together in one bedroom ,the other bedrooms for his parents and there was the living room/kitchen.  There was no hot water and no heat/air conditioning either. In the winter, he would stand in the freezing cold all day with barely any coverage to gather up mulch and use it to make a fire and warm the house. In the summer,Turkey (especially the eastern area), was extremely hot and went over 100 degrees on most days.  This area of Turkey actually has one of the most highest temperature records being 120 degrees. Just remember….THEY HAD NO AIR CONDITIONING!! On a typical nice day though my dad would do fun childlike things like play soccer with his friends or watch his siblings. Even as a child my dad had serious responsibilities .He always took school very seriously.  His favorite subjects were history and math. He liked philosophy and the way math made your mind work. He always tells me “The things math teaches you help you with skills in your everyday life.” That helped him get far because it would one day work in his favor.

Now as a teen, him and his family have moved west to Istanbul.  The things it has to offer, the things he can do. He started experimenting with the fun offerings of Istanbul and started out in small roles on tv like extras or playing small parts that usually don't say much.  He loved it at first but once he got into it more he realized its not for him. Now his ambition was to get an education and that meant going to college. The place he chose was far away from istanbul, in Ankara so our family was extremely scared and sad.  Especially my grandmother. She felt as if her whole world was falling apart one by one. First she lost 2 babies due to health issues and complications, then her husband left for work in another country and now her oldest son who was the man of the house and helped take care of the kids was leaving.  Even though she couldn't bare it, she knew he had to do what was best for him and his future.

New life in Ankara seemed fun, exciting and refreshing.  Meeting new faces, learning in ways he had never before, experiencing a different atmosphere, but was still eager for a new life.  He still felt like there was more to his journey then just college in ankara and Turkey in general. He saw he had the opportunity to go to New York and was immediately interested.  

He booked his flight, he can’t believe he is actually going to America.  All the money he had was going to the ticket so he came literally broke. It would be hard but he felt in his heart that this was meant for him.  When he arrived he had no idea where to go, what to do, he didn't even know how to speak a word of english. He didn't even bring a single belonging.  The first night he slept in the airport. It was scary for him. What would be going through your mind if you came to another country, without a penny, barley any stuff, not knowing where to go or how to speak the language.  You would be terrified. That something i have always admired about my dad. No matter how tough or intimidating a situation or period of time might get, he still went through with it if it took him or his family to a better and more successful place in life whether its success from a education/money point of view or even as simple as a moral view.  While in New york he found a place that slept immigrant students who study at their campus. Though he did not go to school there, They let him stay for two weeks. This will give him plenty of time to find a permanent place to stay. In this program he met many new people from all around the world. He had never in his life. This experience was so interesting and amazing to him because he didn't even think of how other people from different places lived such different lives.  Although there were many diverse groups, of course there were as well many Turks. He quickly became friends and these friends would end up helping him in the long run. One man gave him a number. This number was a woman who lived upstate New York around the kingston/newburgh area. He called and she already knew who he was and what he needed. She invited him to stay at her house, help him get a job and live a life where he is comfortably settled. There he met my mom and the rest of the story is pretty much our lives now.  

Back to something i love,  This is what i love…. I love the fact that my father lived the life he lived and came out Firm in all aspects in his life.  He lived a life of hardship and still pushed himself further and further away from luxury and amenity just to do well for himself, the family he had then and the family he would have in the future.  Something i love is my dad, my hero and the reason i have the life i have today.