BTF (Bridge to Turkiye Fund), 2003 yilinda Amerika’da yasayan Turkler tarafindan kurulmus, tamamen gonullulerden olusan, amaclari toplumun iyiligi icin calismak ve Turkiye’de yardima ihtiyaci olanlara care bulmak olan bir kurum…
Benim BTF ile ilk tanismam 2008 yilinda, Washington DC’de ATA-DC’nin duzenledigi geleneksel Turk Festivali’nin Kultur Koordinatoru olarak calistigim zamana denk geliyor. O gun, o kisacik zaman icinde bana anlattiklari, gorduklerim, samimiyetleri beni o kadar derinden etkiledi ki; daha sonra da yaptiklari etkinlikleri her zaman yakindan takip etmeye devam ettim.
Bir kurum dusunun ki; Turkiye’nin en uzak koylerinden birinde okuyan cocuklara Amerika’da topladigi yardimlarla giyecek yardimi yapiyor, onlara kitaplar aliyor, buyuk sehirlerde imkansizliktan okuyamayan ya da cesitli sebeplerle baski goren genc kizlara yardim elini uzatip onlari yeniden hayata bagliyor, o tertemiz, gencecik yuzlerin gulmesine, gelecege daha umutla bakmasina neden oluyor. Bir kurum ki icinde cekisme yasanmiyor, tum gonulluleri parmakla gosterilecek sekilde muhtesem bir uyumla calisiyor.
Faaliyetleri ise oyle cok ki anlatmaya nereden baslasam hic bilemiyorum. Belki de en dogrusu ilk once sizleri kullanimi oldukca rahat ve keyifli olan websitelerine yonlendirmek; www.bridgetoturkiye.org
Bu sayfada gezinerek sizin de bir parcasi olabileceginiz cok sayida BTF projesine ulasmaniz mumkun olabiliyor. Eger sizin uygulamaya koymayi dusundugunuz bir fikriniz varsa onun gerceklesmesi icin de tum BTF gonullerine yine bu sayfadan ulasabiliyorsunuz. Sanirim BTF’nin en guzel yanlarindan bir tanesi belli kaliplara sıkısmadan her fikre ve her projeye karsi acik olmalari…
BTF’nin Proje Koordinatorlerinden sevgili Sibel Karakus’un bana anlattigi orneklerden birisi Jill Stokwell'in onderliginde bir yarismaya katilan BTF’nin diger 500 bin dernek arasından en çok oy toplayan 100 dernek arasına girmeyi başararak 25 bin dolarlık ödülü Çanakkale – Biga’daki Kadın ve Çocuk Merkezi için kazanmasi ve bunu Biga’da degerlendirmesi olmustu. Bu da gosteriyor ki aklinizda bir fikriniz ve yardim bekleyen tanidiginiz birileri varsa BTF bu konuda size yardimci olacak en dogru yer.
Chez Elif’te bu ay size ozellikle tanitmak istedigim konu ise BTF’nin Medine Memi Fonu. Henuz 16 yasinda iken kendisi, annesi ve kizkardeslerine karsi babasindan ve ailesinin diger erkeklerinden gordugu siddete karsi cikmak, dayak yemek yerine okumak isteyen Adiyaman’li Medine canli canli gomulerek olume terkedilir. Ne yazik ki Medine kurtarilamaz ama onun cesaretinden yola cikilarak kurulmus olan Medine Memi Fonu ile okumak isteyen kizlarimiza yardim eli uzatabilecek bir umut dogar. 27 Mart 2011 tarihinde yardimseverler Medine Memi Fonuna destek vermek icin saat 14.00-16.00 arasinda Potomac Falls Virginia’da biraraya gelecekler. Asagida Medine Memi Fonu ve 27 Mart’ta yapilacak olan yardim kampanyasi ile ilgili bilgileri bulabilirsiniz. Lutfen bu anlamli gunde BTF’yi yalniz birakmayin, elinizden geldigince sizler de etrafinizdakilere duyurun. Medine Memi Memorial websitesi icin burayi tiklayabilirsiniz.
Ben Amerika’da yasamiyorum nasil yardimci olabilirim diyen sevgili dostlarima da soyleyebilecegim sey, oncelikle hazihazirdaki BTF projelerine yardim eli uzatmak icin websitelerini ziyaret etmeleri ya da Turkiye’de yardima ihtiyaci oldugunu bildikleri kurumlar ya da kisiler varsa mutlaka BTF ile iletisime gecmeleridir. Emin olun ki her girisiminiz canla basla calisan sevgili BTF’lilerce degerlendirilecektir. Ben sahsim adina aralarinda Sibel Karakus, Emin Pamucak, Ayse Zerwas, Asli Necioglu gibi daha adini sayamayacagim pek cok BTF’liyi tanimaktan, yeri geldiginde onlara destek olmaktan onur duyuyorum.
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BTF (Bridge To Turkiye Fund), Medine Memi Fundraiser and Much More…
BTF (Bridge to Turkiye Fund) was established in 2003 by volunteer Turkish Americans who live in United States to make a difference for the common life and to improve life of those in need in Turkey.
I met BTF ((Bridge to Turkiye Fund) in 2008 during ATA-DC’s annual Washington DC Festival, where I was working as the Cultural Supervisor. During the day of the festival, in a very short time, I was so impressed by their energy, by their projects and how they changed the lives of others that I kept following and helping them whenever they needed.
Think of an organization that help villages located in the far sides of Turkey by providing books, clothing to them or helping out the young girls who would like to get educated or being mistreated in big cities. BTF supports especially young people who need help the most, make them smile and give them courage and hope for the future to come. An organization that is free of power wars and all volunteers care for and help each other.
They have so many projects that I don’t know where to start. Maybe, I should direct you to their fun and easy to browse website first for you to get a glimpse of their projects; http://www.bridgetoturkiye.org/
You can find an ongoing project that you think you can help with in their website or just offer them your own ideas which will be welcomed warmly by the BTF team. I think the best characteristic of this organization is that they are open-minded and willing to help and consider everyone’s ideas.
I would like to share one project that my dear friend Sibel Karakus, a project coordinator at BTF shared with me. Led by a BTF volunteer Jill Stokwell, BTF entered a competition to be selected among the 100 organizations among 500.000 to be eligible to win $ 25.000 which they did and used this money to improve Biga-Canakkale Women and Children’s Center. This wonderful example shows that if you have a good idea or know someone who is need of help BTF is the organization to contact to.
What I wanted to bring to your attention especially this month at Chez Elif is BTF’s Medine Memi Memorial Fund and its upcoming Fudraiser. As a 16-year-old young woman from Adiyaman, Medine was buried alive by her family members after she reported to local police the conditions that her mother, grandmother, and sisters were experiencing. Medine had endured numerous beatings throughout her young life and never received a formal education. In the end, she was killed in a most horrific manner and her family tried to forget she ever existed. BTF created Medine Memi Memorial Fund to be able to help young girls who try to get education and have a better future. Please help BTF by participating Medine Memi Fundraiser that will happen on March 27th between 2-6 pm at Potomac Mills, VA. I attached the details of the fundraiser and the Medine Memi Memorial Flier for your information. Click here to reach Medine Memi Memorial website.
If you wonder how you can help BTF if you live in Turkey; you can contact them if you know someone who is in need or you have a project or simply join in one of their ongoing projects. Any contacts you make with BTF will be received gladly by their volunteers and you will get an immediate attention from them. I am proud of knowing many volunteers at BTF among whom I can name Sibel Karakus, Emin Pamucak, Ayse Zerwas and Asli Necioglu and being able to help out for those in need.
