Turkish-American Business Forum held the recent Women Inspired by the Network "WIN" Speaker Series on Meet Women in Philanthropy with the featured speakers Ms. Ozlenen Kalav of Turkish Philanthropic Fund and Ms. Cigdem Acar of the Bridges of Hope Project at Herrick Feinstein LLP, on December 2, 2008.

The event began with the presentation of Ms. Ozlenen Kalav, the President and CEO of Turkish Philanthopic Fund. Ms. Kalav talked about her professional journey from her Citibank executive days in Asia to her current philanthropic endeavor at Turkish Philanthropic Fund. The next speaker, the President and Founder of the Bridges of Hope Project, Ms. Cigdem Acar discussed how a dream came into being, the organization's past contributions in the education field and their future projects in Turkey.

Presentations followed by an interactive discussion session directed by Ms. Melek Pulatkonak, the President and COO of Hakia, Inc. The panel gave speakers a chance to share their personal experiences while answering specific questions regarding the organizations. In the final Networking part, attandees found an opportunity to meet the speakers and it was especially heartwarming to see most of them wanting to volunteer for the aforementioned organizations.

Please click here to view the TPF presentation of the evening.

We would like to thank all who came for their involvement and continuing support of this great organization. For those who missed this event, we look forward to seeing you at our next event. If you would like to be a part of the planning, or become a contributing sponsor, please feel free to contract us at info@forum.org or 212.599.1192.

Turkish-American Business Forum