TAA-AZ announcements about Republic Day Gala Dinner & Eid Potluck

[Korhan Kaftanoglu]

Please scroll down for English

Herkese uzun ve cok sicak bir yazdan sonra tekrar merhaba

Hava alanindan cikinca yuze vuran havanin soku artik atlatilmistir diye umuyoruz. Aramiza yeni katilanlar da merak etmesin bundan sonra artik sadece sicak olacak. :) Ekim ayinda havalar biraz serinlese de TAA-AZ olarak etkinliklerimiz kizismaya basliyor. 

Onumuzdeki ay 2 buyuk aktiviteyle tekrar bir araya gelecegiz. Kurban bayrami icin gecen sene baslattigimiz potluck (tencereden ne cikarsa) turu bayramlasmamizi bu sene parkta yapacagiz. Gecen sene katilimdan binaya sigamamistik. Bu sene daha da kalabalik bayramlasmak isteriz. Yeri ve zamani en kisa zamanda bildirecegiz. 

29 Ekim Cumhuriyet Bayramini da geleneksel gala yemegi ile 25 Ekim Cumartesi gunu Hilton Mesa'da kutluyoruz. Bu sene, gecen senelerden daha farkli olarak "BIRLIK" temasiyla kutlamak istiyoruz. Atalarimiz "Birlikten kuvvet dogar" demisler. Fazlasiyla ortak yan varken insanlarin birbiriyle farklari uzerine odaklanip bolunmesine inat biz daha da kalabalik, daha da kenetlenerk kutlayalim istiyioruz. Bu sene Arizona omuz omuza vermeyi, el ele kenetlenmeyi ve dayanismayi temsil eden halayin en buyugunu gorsun. O yuzden herkes herkese soylesin, Arizona kalabalik gorsun, Arizona kutlama gorsun. 

Programimiz her seneki gibi saat 6 ile 7 arasinda otel lobisinde kokteyl saati ile baslayacak. Bu sene ayrica yemek esnasinda canli jazz trio konserimiz var. Mukemmel yorumuyla "Lark and Key" grubu bize yemek esnasinda eslik edecek. Sonrasinda ise gecen seneki mukemmel performansli DJ'imizin bu sene icin hazirlayacagi muziklerle dans pistindeki yerimizi alacagiz. 

Fiyatlarimiz ise gecen seneden daha ucuz. Hatta kurban bayramlasmasindan evvel veya bayramlasma esnasinda satilan biletler daha da indirimli (ki ben de gecen seneki gibi biletlerle alakali kabus gormeyeyim, bana da yazik). 5 Ekim aksamina kadar uyelerimiz biletlerini indirimli $40, uye olmayanlar ise $45 dolara alabilirler. 6 Ekimden itibaren bilet fiyati uyeler icin $45, uye olmayanlar icin ise $55 olacaktir. Tavuk veya vejeteryan yemek seceneklerini bilet alirken belirtmenizi unutmayin. Uyeliginizi internetten kolayca yapabilirsiniz. Cocuk ve ogrenciler ise "Tavuk kizartma (Chicken strips)  ve patates kizartmasi" menusunde bu sene. Cocuk bileti $20, ogrenciler ise hala $25. Diger menuye gecmek isteyen ogrenciler sure kisitlamasiz indirimli uye fiyatindan faydalanabilirler. Biletleri yonetimden veya bilet satis gonullulerinden alabilirsiniz. Biletler ayrica sitemizden de guvenli olarak kredi kartiyla satin alinabilir. Kredi karti komisyonunu karsilamak icin malesef yetiskin bileti basina $2, cocuk ve ogrenci bileti basina $1 eklemek zorundayiz. 

Bu sene ayrica bir turlu bitmek bilmeyen cekilise de bir ara verelim istedik. Artik dans pistinden inmek icin tek bahane masadakileri cagirmak olsun! Katkitda bulunmak isteyenler giristeki bagis masamizdan makbuz karsiligi, ya da internetten yapabilir.

Kissadan hisse, bu sene hep beraber olalim, Cumhuriyetimizi hep beraber kutlayalim...

Unutmadan... Eger serbest meslek sahibiyseniz ve kartinizi cuzi bir ucret karsiligi gala programina basmak ve sene sonuna kadar sitemizin ana sayfasinda yayinlamak isterseniz bizimle iletisime gecebilirsiniz. 

Pek yakinda gorusmek uzere

Dipnot: Email basligini "Sevim kos TAA-AZ'dan mektup geldi" diye atip "Bizimkiler" dizisini ansa miydik? :)

Korhan Kaftanoglu

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Hello to everyone after a very long and hot summer

We are assuming the heat shock after getting out of the airport is finally gone. For those of you joining us new in AZ should not worry as it'll be only hot from now on :) While the weather will cool some in October, it's when TAA-AZ events start getting hot! 

We have 2 big events coming up this next month. For the Eid, we'll have our second annual potluck at a park. We couldn't fit in the building rented last year due to overwhelming attendance and we are hoping to see more people this year. We'll let you know about the details soon.

We'll be celebrating the Republic Day with our traditional gala dinner on October 25th in Hilton Mesa. This year, unlike the previous ones, we actually have a specific theme of "UNITY". The proverbs in many languages say "There's strength in numbers" after all. We are in times where people focus on solely the differences and split in groups while there are so many common things that should be bonding us. This year, we would like to have the biggest Halay Arizona has witnessed as it symbolizes going hand in hand and support each other. Therefore spread the word and let Arizona see people united, people celebrating! 

Our program this year will again start with a cocktail hour at the lobby between 6 and 7. This year we will be accompanied with the beautiful live music of "The Lark and Key" a great local jazz trio band during dinner. Then the dance floor will be owned by us all with the great playlist of last year's amazing DJ!

Our prices are even lower than last years! In fact, the tickets are further discounted till October 6th (The weekend of Eid potluck) so I don't get to see nightmares about tickets like I did last year (No, seriously). The limited time discounted prices for the tickets are $40 for members, and $45 for non members. On October 6th the prices will be $45 for members and $55 for non members. Don't forget to tell us if you'd like the chicken plate or the vegetarian. And if you have not paid for our membership yet, you can do so at our web site. The kids and the students will be in the "Chicken fingers and fries" menu. The price is $20 for kids, and $25 for TUSA member students. If any student would like to switch to the chicken/vegetarian menu, they can do so at discounted member pricing without time constraint. You can buy the tickets from the board members or ticket volunteers in person or you can buy them securely on our Square terminal with your credit card. Unfortunately we have to add $2 per adult plate and $1 per student or kids plate to cover up the credit card commission. 

Yet another difference is that we are skipping the "Never ending raffle hour" this year. You should not have no other excuse to get off the dance floor than to bring the ones at the table to the floor! For those who would like to contribute with donations, you can do so at our donation table or again at our Square terminal . 

Long story short, let's all get together this year and celebrate the republic together...

Oh and before I forget... If you own a business and would like to promote your business card by printing it on our gala program and the front page of our site till the end of year for a nominal fee, please get back in touch with us.

PS: Also please shoot us an email back if you are only reading the English portion of the email stating you are...

See you soon 

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Korhan Kaftanoglu
2014 President|TAA-AZ