ATAA is a fast-growing umbrella organization of Turkish American associations throughout the United States, Canada and Turkey, dedicated to pursuing the interests of Turkish Americans and friends of Turkey in Washington and beyond.

ATAA was co-founded by the American Turkish Association of Washington and the Maryland American Turkish Association in an effort to create a national organization representing the Turkish American community.

The first meeting of the ATAA General Assembly was held in May of 1980 in Washington. Delegates from 26 organizations participated and created a coordination committee to write the constitution and bylaws. The bylaws of ATAA were ratified on November 16, 1980 and the first board of ATAA was elected.

Today, the Assembly is an influential and fast growing civic organization that pursues the interests of Turkish Americans and friends of Turkey in Washington and beyond, as well as contributes to the strengthening of relations between the United States and Turkey.

A growing base of individual ATAA members support the work of the Assembly through dues and donations. Financial assistance to the operations of ATAA is also granted from the ATAA Endowment Fund, established to secure the long-term growth of the organization.

To fulfill its mission and objectives, ATAA undertakes a number of activities, such as educational seminars for Turkish American communities on grassroots advocacy and civic leadership; conferences on contemporary political, social and economic issues related to Turkey and US Turkish relations; and cultural events to promote Turkey’s rich traditions, art and heritage.

Working as an information clearinghouse, ATAA regularly publishes reference material on issues that concern the Turkish American community. The Assembly is also the publisher of a quarterly magazine, The Turkish American.

ATAA hosts one of the most dynamic websites on Turkey and maintains and extensive e-mail communication network.

ATAA is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt, non-profit organization.

Ergün Kırlıkovalı
President

Ergün Kırlıkovalı was born in Izmir, Turkey.  He attended Robert College, Istanbul, Turkey.  He received his BS degree in Chemistry from Bogazici University and MS degree in Polymer Science from the University of Manchester, England.   He also conducted research on polymers in Holland and Austria.  He was employed as a product development and research chemist in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York.  Currently, he is the founding president of his company which conducts research and development on new materials based on interpenetrating network polymers.  He found himself in need of promoting and defending Turkish culture and heritage due to a relentless barrage of unsolicited and unjustified anti-Turkish attacks by Armenian and Greek lobbies and others in America. He had written more than 5,000 letters to the editors, news programmers, panelists, politicians, academicians, and other opinion-makers.  He also appeared on TV and radio shows and participated in conferences and panels in universities and colleges in an effort to present the other side of the story and fight against discrimination and censorship fostered by a surprisingly racist and dishonest version of history persistently promoted by anti-Turkish lobbies.  He has served as president of American-Turkish Association of Southern California, Public Relations Committee Chairman and later Western U.S. Regional Director for the Federation of Turkish American Associations in New York and ATAA in Washington DC. He is married, has one son, and lives in Southern California. 

Mehmet Celebi
President Elect

Mehmet Celebi moved to the US in 1988 and received a Bachelor's degree in International Relations and Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Mr. Celebi is a co-founder of Arti Bir Group, a group of companies engaged in construction, manufacturing, entertainment and fashion in Turkey and the Middle East. He pioneered several initiatives in Turkey including the first ever Turkish-Hollywood movie and TV Series, where he brought top US celebrities to Turkish television programs. The Group’s live event company is one of Turkey’s largest concert organizers, exclusively representing performers such as Ajda Pekkan, Tarkan and Teoman. In 2009, Mr. Celebi co-organized “Fashionable Istanbul”, Turkey’s first international fashion event featuring top designers such as Roberto Cavalli, and Salvatore Ferragamo. Mr. Celebi has co-founded and/or served on several Turkish-American organizations, including TACA-Chicago (President 2001-2005), ATAA (Midwest VP and Board Member 2001-2005).  Since 2008, he has been a Member of the Dean’s International Council at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy, where he is working on projects connecting the Turkish academic and business communities. He is a co-founder of the Interfaith & Global Peace Initiative and has served on the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations’ Task Force (2003-2004). Mr. Celebi also serves on the Buck Institute for Research on Aging. During Mr. Celebi’s leadership positions, he worked closely and continues to work with many ethnic communities including Greek, Armenian, Jewish and Arab groups. In 2007, Mehmet joined the Hillary Clinton for President Campaign to have a Turkish voice in the Presidential elections.  He was one of the top fund-raisers for the campaign and later became the Regional Co-Chair of the Finance Committee and a Hillary Clinton’s delegate from Illinois-the first Turkish-American to hold that position. Mehmet is fluent in Turkish, English, Arabic and Spanish, and is married with 3 sons.

Günay Evinch
Past President

Gunay Evinch (Övünç) was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1963. Evinch serves on the ATAA (www.ataa.org) Board of Directors as Past President. Evinch was ATAA's first American-born and 14th President. He has been an ATAA volunteer since 1989, having served as a writer for The Turkish Times (1989-1996), Legal Counsel (1996-98), Secretary General (1998-2000), Capital Region Vice President (2004-06), President-Elect (2007-09), and President (2009-11). He completed his Juris Doctor at Washington & Lee University in Virginia (1991), EU Legal Studies at the University of Madrid (1989), and Bachelor Degrees in Economics and Public Service at the University of California, Davis (1986). He received the Lee Law Grant as well as the UC Regents Outstanding Senior Award. Between 1991-93, Evinch was a U.S. Fulbright Scholar and Japan Sasakawa Scholar in International Law, Anti-terror, and the Armenian case. He is a lawyer at the law firm of Saltzman & Evinch (www.Turklaw.Net), which he established in 1994. Among its clientele, Saltzman & Evinch represents the Turkish Republic, Turkish Defense Ministry, Turkish Central Bank, Turkish Ziraat Bank and Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in federal litigation as well as serves as General Counsel to the Turkish Embassy, Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB), and Turkish Defense Technologies and Engineering (STM/SSM). Evinch served as a Director on the World Affairs Councils of America National Board (2009-11). Evinch has been representing the ATAA at the Heritage Council of the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence since 2008.

Esra Alemdar
Secretary General

Esra Alemdar is the International Programs Manager at the U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress (FMC), and manages the Turkey and Germany programming for the U.S. Congress: the Congressional Study Group on Turkey and the Congressional Study Group on Germany. Ms. Alemdar holds a B.A. in International Affairs with a concentration on International Politics, and minors in German and History from the George Washington University. Ms. Alemdar is currently pursuing her M.A. in Government at SAIS, Johns Hopkins University. Previously an intern for FMC, she has also interned at the White House Office of Global Communications, the Assembly of Turkish-American Associations (ATAA), the United States-Azerbaijan Chamber of Commerce (USACC), and the House Committee of Foreign Affairs, working closely with the Honorable Robert Wexler (D-FL, 1997-2010) at the House Subcommittee on Europe. Born and raised in Ankara, Turkey, Ms. Alemdar moved to the United States in 2005 to pursue her college education. In September 2006, Ms. Alemdar reactivated the George Washington University Turkish Student Association (GWU TSA), and served as its President until 2009. As President of GWU TSA, Ms. Alemdar organized numerous educational events; such as lectures, documentary screenings, and panel discussions on issues, such as the plight of Armenians during World War I, terrorism, and the importance of revitalizing U.S.-Turkish relations. In 2007, the American Turkish Association of Washington D.C. (ATA-DC) presented Ms. Alemdar a Community Service Award for her dedication to the Turkish-American cause. In 2008, Ms. Alemdar was given the Young Leaders Award by ATAA at the 28th Annual ATAA Convention. A board member of the Ataturk Society of America, Ms. Alemdar is also a member of the Congressional Youth Leadership Council (CYLC), Young Professionals in Foreign Policy (YPFP) and ATAA.

Esra Ugurlu
Treasurer

Esra Ugurlu holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Rutgers University. She has worked in a variety of positions in the retail and financial sectors, including Sterling Bank and Prudential Financial. Currently, she is a Financial Advisor/Broker with uFinancial in Exton, PA where she represents 46 financial institutions as a broker of financial services. She is a member of the National Association of Women Owned Businesses (NAWBO), National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, and the American Business Women Association. She has served as the Chairperson of the Philadelphia Turkish Festival in 2008. She is currently serving as the Vice President of Young Professionals, Turkish American Friendship Society of the United States (TAFSUS)

Ibrahim Kurtulus
V.P. New York Region
(NY, NJ, Canada)

Born in Istanbul, Turkey and living in the United States since 1971, Ibrahim holds both US and Turkish citizenships.  He received his BA in Business & Finance from the Staten Island College.  Ibrahim is married for 15 years and has been working as an investment banker in Wall Street for 18 years.  He served as Acting President of the Federation of Turkish American Associations (FTAA) for 6 months in 2003. Ibrahim was the advisor to the President of FTAA from 2001 to 2010. He is an Honorary Member of Cpl. Allan F. Kivilehan Chapter Korean War Veterans, Staten Island and an honorary member of the Central Long Island Chapter Korean War Veterans.  Ibrahim was the advisor to the President of Istanbul University Alumni Association, IUMEZUSA during the 2005- 2007 period.  He is also the advisor to the president of Turk Hars Alliance, Staten Island, since 1998.  Ibrahim is one of the Founding Family Members of United American Muslim Association and an associate member of Fatih Camii in New York since 1977.  Ibrahim is a member of the Advisory Committee for Turkish Citizens Living Abroad (T.C. Yurtdisinda Yasayan Vatandaslar Danisma Kurulu, ABD Uyesi) since 2011.  He is an Acting Director of Bowling Green Association, New York, since 2001 and the Turkish American Community leader / liaison to Jewish American community in New York since 2000.  Ibrahim is a member of Staten Island community Civic Association since 1997.

Feridun Bek
V.P. Mid Central Region
(IN, KY, MI, OH)

Feridun Bek is a Turkish-American-German, who was born in Munich in 1973. He studied Business Administration of Management in Germany, U.K. and Turkey and has a post-degree in commercial information technology. He has a Masters degree for Management from the Frankfurt Business School of Finance and Management and holds an Executive MBA from the Henley Reading University (U.K.). Mr. Bek works for a management consulting firm that supports multibillion dollar companies with developing business strategies, strategic plans and their project implementations. He worked for VW Group Headquarters in Germany and has represented the German Chamber of Commerce in the Turkish-German Economic Convention in Istanbul in 2007. Former ATAA Treasurer Mr. Bek is currently, the Co-chair of the ATAA National Grassroots Committee, and the newly elected President of TACAM in Michigan. He has also been the ATAA Co-Chair for the Armenian Research Committee. He worked with the ATAA team and created the strategic plan “VISION 2023” to deal with the Armenian Issue. He also served on the board of ATA-Washington DC and he was for six years in the Executive Board of the German/European Atatürk Association; has been the Public Relations Manager of the Turkish Theater Group “Umran Ertok” for three years; and was one of the founders and a board member of the Turkish-German Student Organization ITEA in Germany. Mr. Bek is married with two children.

Demet Cabbar
V.P. Capital Region
(DC, MD, VA)

Mehves Sonmez
V.P. Northeastern Region
(CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT)

Mehves Sonmez is a Turkish American born in Turkey. She graduated from Istanbul University with a degree in economics and holds an MBA degree from University of Hartford.  She worked in a variety of positions within the financial and manufacturing sectors including Enka Export Import Inc.Turkey, Bank of America, Morin Corp., and Trumpf Inc. Ms. Sonmez was a Vice President on the Wellington Board of Directors for six years and has served in a variety non-profit organizations in the Connecticut and New York area, including the Istanbul University Alumni Association USA where she was an executive board member for two consecutive terms: as a treasurer and president. She has also served as a liaison between the Association and different ethnic groups such as Ahiska Turks and Macedonians, to form cultural exchanges and create a better understanding between these groups.  She has organized Atatürk Symposiums in two consecutive years at the United Nations Head Quarters in New York. She directly participated in organizing and gaining the co-sponsorship of the Turkish community for a YOM HASHOAH lecture at the Hobanim congregation in NYC, as well as the “Jewish-Turkish Relations Throughout History” symposium held at the Northwestern University in Chicago.  She was a Senior Vice President at the Federation of Turkish American Associations in 2010. Currently, she serves as a chairperson for Auditing Committee of the Southern New England Turkish American Association. Ms. Sonmez is a Notary Public in Connecticut.  She has a daughter and has lived in Connecticut for 22 years.

Faruk Cingilli
V.P. Midwestern Region
(IL, IA, KS, MN, MO,NE, WI)

Faruk Cingilli has been an active member of Turkish American Association of Minnesota since 1996.  He organized the Turkish Bazaar for the Festival of Nations in Minnesota, donated the proceeds to the Turkish Student Association and managed the logistics of several Turkish stands at the festival for many years.  He has donated his time and money for other events like TAAM's Republic Day Dinner by sponsoring the attendance of over 20 American friends of Turkey for the last several years. He also has been an active member of ATAA for the last couple years. He supported ATAA's grassroots activities through his visits to local congressmen's offices both in Washington DC and in Minnesota.  In addition, the long lost connection between TAAM and ATAA has been reestablished by Faruk's unwavering efforts.  Through that, a seminar by Turkkaya Ataov and other census related seminars were successfully held in cooperation with TAAM. Faruk has a B. Sc. degree in Business Administration from the Middle East Technical University.  He worked in Development Bank of Turkey before starting his own consulting company.  During this time he has traveled extensively to Russia and other FSU countries to establish trade relationships between them and Turkish SMSE’s.  Faruk worked as the Counselor on Foreign Economic Relations to the Minister of Agriculture (H.E. Refaiddin Sahin) for 3 years, before becoming the first United Nations Development Program volunteer in Russia.  He functioned as the foreign economic advisor to the Governor of Altai for 16 months. After moving to the U.S. with his family in 1996, Faruk established his own businesses and grew it from one employee to 16 employees.  He currently owns and operates two FedEx Ground contractor companies and a coffee shop in Minneapolis.  His business acumen, his organizational and people skills make him a strong candidate for this position.

Maria Cakiraga
V.P. Western Region
(AZ, CA, CO, HI, NV, NM, UT)

Maria Cakiraga was born in 1958 in Medford, Massachusetts. She received a BSME degree from Tufts University, and has worked as an Aerospace Engineer for Boeing and Raytheon. Ms. Cakiraga has received professional awards such as the Silver Snoopy, given by astronauts to the winning nominee (1993) and Launch Honoree, a safety award given by NASA to the winning nominee (1997). She was also one of the first recipients of the "Daughters of Ataturk" award. She has been a member of the American Turkish Association of Southern California (ATASC) since 1982, where she has held many top level positions including Board Member and Treasurer of ATASC Turkish School. Ms. Cakiraga lives in Placentia, California with her husband Turgut Cakiraga.

Ibrahim Onaral
V.P. North Central Region
(DE, PA, WV)

Ibrahim Onaral received a Bachelor’s Degree from Robert College in Civil Engineering in 1971 and a Master’s Degree from Bogazici University in 1973. He is a structural engineer by profession. He has worked as a bridge and structural engineer in a variety of positions both in the US and overseas. As a young bridge engineer, he participated in the construction of the first suspension bridge over the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey. Currently he serves as a Vice President for QBS International, Inc. in charge of the Bridge Department and Business Development. A couple of decades ago, motivated by the need to defend the Turkish Culture and history against unfair and unjustified attacks by various anti-Turkish lobbies in this country, he decided to join the Turkish American organizations with the hope and determination of making a difference. He has served for the local Turkish American organization in the Philadelphia area TAFSUS (Turkish American Friendship Society of the United States) at various positions such as board member, as President and Vice President in the last 20 years. As a TAFSUS board member and as a Turkish American, he has written articles and participated in radio programs fighting against articles, and news distorting and misrepresenting Turkish history and culture. He has been a member of ATAA since 1979. Currently he serves as the past president and treasurer of TAFSUS and as the ATAA Vice President for the North Central region. During his tenure in the last two years as the regional vice president for ATAA, he organized various grassroots efforts and cultural events to increase awareness of Turkish American interests in his region and to promote ATAA as the national organization for Turkish Americans. He is married to Banu Onaral and has one son. He lives in Philadelphia, PA.

Sevgi Baran
V.P. Northwestern Region
(AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY)

Sevgi Baran was born in Istanbul and moved to the US in 1990. She currently works as an Information Technology Specialist at Seattle Central Community College where she teaches computer classes. Ms. Baran is an active member of the Turkish American Cultural Association in Washington State (TACAWA) where she has served as President, Vice-President and Social Chair. She has contributed to the Association and her community through projects such as TURKFEST, "Sesimiz" Magazine Publication Team Lead, Turkish Cancer Patients Assistance Committee, University Students Assistance Coordinator, Turkish earthquake relief efforts, and recruited new members to TACAWA. Ms. Baran is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Maple Leaf Community Garden (MLCG), İstanbul Photograph and Cinema Amateurs Club (IFSAK), and Istanbul Sailing Club (IYK). She is passionate about traveling, gardening and photography. She has had several photography exhibitions at TURKFEST and local Starbucks stores. Ms. Baran is single and lives with her extended family in Washington State.

Sibel Pakdemirli
V.P. South/Southwestern Region
(AR, LA, MS, OK, TX)

Sibel Pakdemirli was born in Izmir, Turkey in 1970. After receiving her Bachelor of Science degree in nursing, she worked at several state hospitals in Turkey. Mrs. Pakdemirli was the head nurse at a treatment facility specializing in the physical treatment of Norwegian patients at Balcova Thermal in Izmir,Turkey . Mrs. Pakdemirli moved to Fort Walton Beach, Florida in 1996 to continue her career. She has been in San Antonio, Texas since 2007. She is a San Antonio City coordinator for the Turkish Political Action Committee in Houston. She has also been actively involved with the Turkish Coalition of America since 2008. Currently she teaches GED (high school evening) class for one of the largest school districts in Texas. She lives in San Antonio with her husband Jonathan and three children Kurthan, Melody and Hale. She is fluent in Turkish and English, and beginner in Norwegian and Spanish.

Mazlum Kosma
V.P. Southeastern Region
(GA, NC, SC, FL, AL)

Mazlum Kosma worked as an elementary school teacher in Anatolian country side after graduating from Corum Ilkogretmen Okulu. Later on, he studied at the 19 Mayis Genclik ve Spor Akademisi in Ankara and graduated in 1979. He attended ODTU English Preparatory School and started his graduate studies at ODTU, and then came to USA in 1984 to complete his master’s and doctorate in Sports Administration respectively at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and Florida State University in Tallahassee, FL. He moved to Atlanta, Georgia in 1995 to work for Summer Olympic Games preparation. He lived and worked in the 1996 Summer Olympic Village, also assisting Turkish Olympic team. Since then, he has been living in Atlanta, GA and working at Georgia Tech. He has been active in the Turkish-American community; Chair of 23 Nisan Children’s Day Committee, TACAGA-Board Member, By-Law Committee Member, and currently TACAGA-president. As a musician, folk dancer and a folkdance teacher, he represented Turkish culture in many international festivals in Turkey, Europe and in the US, and also conducted workshops on Turkish Folkdance and culture. He founded Turkish Folkdance Group of Atlanta in 1999 and he has been still performing with the group in festivals in Georgia and neighboring states. He has been a member of ATAA since 2005. He has been also a member of the Georgia Council for International Visitors as a Citizen Diplomat and active in Atlanta International Community. He is married to Winnie Kosma with one daughter, Eda. Mazlum and his wife Winnie like ballroom dancing and attending daughter Eda’s concerts.

Kürşad Doğru, Chairman
Esma A. Akın
Cengiz Aygun
Oya Bain
Rebii Dağoğlu
Engin Inel Holmstrom
Tunca Iskır
Bonnie Joy Kaslan
Ali Manizade
Davut Ökütçü
Nurettin Sabuncu
Mehmet Toy

Hakan Dakın, Art/Media Director
Seçil Göksu, Programs Director
Yenal Küçüker, Civic Engagement Director