The Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) and the Turkish Cultural Foundation (TCF) were honored to host Congressman John Boehner (R-OH), the Speaker of the House, at a dinner on April 12, 2011 in Washington, D.C.
Speaker Boehner was joined at the dinner by Congresswoman Ileana Ros Lehtinen (R-FL), chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, as well as Congressman Ed Whitfield (R-KY) and Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-VA), two co-chairs of the Turkey Caucus.
The dinner was a historic event, the first official meeting between members of the Congressional leadership and leaders of the Turkish American community, signaling Congressional recognition of the increasingly important and positive contributions of the Turkish American community.
Representing the Turkish American community at the dinner were Dr. Yalcin Ayasli and Dr. Serpil Ayasli, the founders of TCF and TCA; Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO of the Coca Cola Corporation; Ergun Kirlikovali, President of Integrated Polymer Industries, Inc.; G. Lincoln McCurdy, President of TCA; Guler Koknar, Executive Director of TCF; and Lydia Borland of Turkish Coalition USA PAC.
Congressional and Turkish American leaders met on April 12 for a historic dinner. Back Row (L to R): Ergun Kirlikovali, Integrated Polymer Industries, Inc.; Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY); Muhtar Kent, Coca-Cola; Dr. Serpil Ayasli, TCA and TCF; Speaker John Boehner (R-OH); Dr. Yalcin Ayasli, TCA and TCF; G. Lincoln McCurdy, TCA. Front Row (L to R): Lydia Borland, TC-USA PAC; Guler Koknar, TCF; Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL); Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC)
