ATFA strongly condemns this act of violence and evil. We have no doubt that those responsible for this horrific event will be brought to inevitable justice, and have accomplished nothing but unite those who are inherently good in the face of evil.

Connie Tzioumis spoke about advancing strategic partnerships between the Department of State and the private and non-governmental sectors (NGOs, foundations, universities, etc.), focusing on diaspora communities, corporate social responsibility, youth issues, and a regional focus on East Asia and the Pacific.  Mr. Bhatia also talked about his focuses on creating partnerships and developing programs that engage diaspora organizations in the U.S. in order to achieve developmental objectives of the Agency.

]]> http://www.atfa.us/another-community-engagement-night-took-place-at-atfa/feed/ 0 http://www.atfa.us/turkish-coffee-night-at-atfa/ http://www.atfa.us/turkish-coffee-night-at-atfa/#comments Fri, 05 Apr 2013 02:23:03 +0000 ATFA http://www.atfa.us/?p=3283 American Turkish Friendship Association held a Turkish Coffee Night with the organization of the association’s Women’s Club. Guests were welcomed by President of ATFA, Ahmet Tarik Ilhan, shown short videos of introduction both Turkey and ATFA. Subsequently, Mrs. Shahin gave a presentation about the background of Turkish Coffee, after which guests had a first hand experience in making it. The night was concluded after our guests enjoyed Turkish Coffee.

Watch full video below:

ATFA Women’s Club will be holding its first Book Club meeting on April 25, 2013 between 6:30pm to 8:30pm at ATFA. In our first meeting, we will be reviewing the book, Yes, I Would Love Another Glass of Tea, written by Katharine Branning which comprises a series of imaginary letters written to Lady Mary Montague, whose famous Embassy Letters were written in 1716-1718 during her stay in Turkey as the wife of the English ambassador. The author uses themes dear to Lady Mary, such as culture, art, religion, women and daily life, to reflect on those same topics as encountered during the author’s past 30 years of travel in Turkey.  We strongly encourage you to purchase the book and read it before the meeting so that we can all discuss it. You can order the book online through amazon, booksamillion, barnes&noble etc.

Date: Thursday, April 25

Time: 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm

Where: ATFA, 3949 University Drive, Fairfax, VA 22030

Light refreshments will be served

Click to RSVP

After tasting traditional food of Turkic nations, guests continued to view display corners of Azerbaijan, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan and familiarize themselves with certain elements of each culture. Subsequently, President of EACA, Nadir Shafiyev, gave an opening speech welcoming the guests in the name of ATFA and EACA, after which guests enjoyed being entertained by various folklore performances, like traditional dance and music of countries listed above.

Later on, some of the distinguished guests were invited to give speeches. Chairman of Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Sharon Bulova, thanked ATFA and EACA for organizing the event, and expressed how delighted she was to see such diverse, but united community in her district. Supervisor John Cook also noted that he was thankful for being invited to such an event, and that he was very pleased with Turkic nations of his district for making it happen. Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan, H.E. Mukhtar Djumaliev, who said that it was his second time participating in this annual Nowruz celebration, underlined the importance of Nowruz for Turkic nations after thanking for the organization of the event. Last but not the least, Ambassador of Azerbaijan, H.E. Elin Suleymanov emphasized that there have been many Nowruz celebrations in American community in the past; however, this was the first one with such wide audience that included many nations.

As the closing part of the event, distinguished guests and performers sang the Turkish song “Eski Dostlar” (“Old Friends”) and thanked the guests for participating.

We are pleased to announce our new upcoming Turkish Coffee Night. Turkish Coffee Night is a monthly gathering in a nice and warm environment with presentation, fun activities, and conversation. Don’t miss out on this wonderful event!

Please joins us and experience different cultures and taste traditional foods.

Program Highlights: 
-Presentation about Turkey
-Turkish Tea( demonstrate )
-Turkish Food & Dessert
-Turkish Folklore
- Slideshow presentation of tea (from plantations to the table)

Date: Thursday, May 2, 2013

Time: 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Where: ATFA, 3949 University Drive, Fairfax, VA 22030

Click to RSVP