The Washington Metropolitan area held its Cumhuriyet Bayram Dinner on Sunday, October 25th, at the delightful Kazan Restaurant in McLean, VA.  Kazan's is closed on Sundays, but the owner, Zeynel Uzun, always opens up the restaurant for our celebration.  As usual, Zeynel provided us with a çok lezzetli meal of meze, döner kebab, tatlı, çay, kahve, ve beyaz ve kırmızı şarap.  Anatolian Artisans sold their lovely Turkish wares, and there were Turkish carpets for sale, as well.  Ken Hill (T9) and the wait staff presided over the raffles of baskets of goodies, which raised $262 for "Arkadaslar."

Sixty-three (63) people attended, and while most were from MD, VA, and DC, we also had people from PA, NJ, TN, CO, and WA.  Margaret Hamill Patterson (T-4) came the furthest -- from Spokane, WA.  First-time newcomers to the dinner were:  Jenny Nicklas Herre (T-16) and her husband, Jeff; Ken Marion (T-8) and his daughter, Minta Marion Trivette; and Sinan Denny-Brown, son of Myles and Nes'e Denny-Brown (T-8). 

Mike Jewell (T-1), President of "Arkadaşlar," gave some welcoming remarks, and Kevin Quigley, President of the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA), also spoke.  Yours truly, Treasurer of "Arkadaslar," gave a brief history of the 6 projects in Turkey to which "Arkadaşlar" contributes.  I spoke about 3 of them ("Sevinç Abla Okulu," the "Beekeeping Project," and "Ashoka"), and then turned the microphone over to Mustafa Soykan of "Üniversite Öğrencilerine Yardım Derneği" (Post-Secondary Scholarships); to Yildiz Yagci of "Anatolian Artisans," and to Valerie Olson, wife of C. Erik Olson (T-1) "C. Erik Olson Memorial Fund," so that they could describe their respective projects.  Dave Weinman (Amca) gave some concluding remarks and invited everyone to come back again next year.
                                                   -- report by Linda Scheffer

Linda Scheffer (T-8) at home.  On wall are two silkscreens by Zeki Fındıkoğlu, artist and Arkadaşlar member

Margaret Hamill Patterson (T-4) at Linda Scheffer’s prior to going to the dinner.


Pat Schoeni, wife to Dave Weinman (Amca) next to her, and Nevzer Stacey of HasNa


Dave Weinman (Amca), Donovan McClure (Director of Peace Corps – Turkey) and his son, Casey.
At the table behind them are Myles Denny-Brown (T-8) and his wife, Neş’e, and son, Sinan.  Sitting to the right of  Linda Scheffer (T-8) with white hair are Bob Gnuse, and his wife Marcia Gnuse (T-13), and hidden behind Donovan McClure is Jenny Micklas Herre (T-16) and her husband, Jeff.  Across from Marcia and Bob are Ken Marion (t-8) and his daughter, Minta Marion Trivette.

Frank Creel (T-2), his wife, Ender Creel, and John Gallivan (T-2)

L-R table in foreground: Jenny Nicklas Herre (T-16), Marcia Gnuse (T-13) and her husband, Bob Gnuse, Linda Scheffer (T-8), and Sinan Denny-Brown, son of Myles (T-8) and Neş’e
At the table  behind and to the left are Ken Hill (T-9) and Demet Cabbar (President of the American Turkish Association of DC, or ATA-DC)
At the table behind and to the right are Donovan McClure (Director of Peace Corps – Turkey) and his son, Casey, Dave Weinman (Amca) and his wife, Pat Schoeni.

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02/20/10