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Celebrating a Life

Music Concert At Library Opening

By YES Turkey Alumni

In the spring of 2016, the YES family was saddened to hear that YES student Ataberk Besler (YES 2015-16, Turkey, hosted with AFS in Arizona) had passed away after an accident. As the YES community in Turkey and his host community in the U.S. absorbed the loss, they also knew they needed to do something to celebrate his life.

Banner From Us Friends Now Hanging At Ataberks Mothers House

Above photo: A banner created by Ataberk's American friends. It now hangs at his mother's home.

There was one thing that all of Ataberk’s YES friends remembered from the time they spent with him, he wanted to help those in need. While the alumni in Turkey brainstormed ways to commemorate Ataberk’s legacy, a group of YES alumni visited his family in Canakkale. His mother said that in all the talks she had with him during his exchange year, he was very passionate about doing something to help students who were hindered from reaching their potential because of economic hardship. She remembered Ataberk always said, “I will help them get an education.” 

After visiting Ataberk’s family, YES alumni in Turkey decided the best way to celebrate his life would be to work towards his dream of helping others reach their educational goals. Alumni and volunteers in Adana, a city in the southern part of Turkey, suggested a local primary school. Many of the students in this particular school are from immigrant or refugee families (mainly Turkish, Kurdish, and Syrian), and approximately 40% are from single-parent homes. Many of the students are also economically disadvantaged, and the school itself is lacking in both financial and material resources.

We visited the school principal to talk about the project we had in mind. His feedback and support assured us that this was the right place to help make Ataberk’s dreams into reality. He also stated that the lack of good role models and mentors also contributes to the students not achieving higher education. With the principal’s words, we decided on a two-pronged project: a school library to improve educational resources and a mentoring program with YES alumni as role models.

School Principal And Alumni Meeting About Library Plans

Photo: YES alumni met with the school principal.

The alumni began by identifying a site within the school to build the library room. Since nothing like this existed in the school, we had to start from the beginning. We made a list of needed items which included materials to build the library, furniture, and of course books. For the first two items, we went door to door to find builders who would be willing to donate their time and/or resources, or lower their usual fees. For the books, we had two options: buy new books or run a book drive to collect books. We did both. It took approximately one month to complete the library.

Founding the library was not our only goal. We also aimed to spend time with the students so that we might help them broaden their horizons. On October 14th, we visited the school to officially open the library and introduce it to the students. We also invited our musician friends to come and play for the students. Sensu Kacar (YES ’14) stated that “I thought I had few opportunities to achieve things in life. But look at all these kids whose eyes have shined with hope when they met us.”

The school now has a library that serves 630 students between ages 7-13 with 544 books and other resources. We are planning regular visits to the school to organize various activities for both fun and educational purposes, and we plan to keep working to help them achieve their goals. What better way to serve one of Ataberk’s life goals and celebrate his life? We, as YES Alumni Turkey, are thankful to Ataberk who guided us with his ideas to serve people in need. May peace be upon you. Keep smiling at us.

Ataberk Besler Photo

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