About Oktay

Oktay was born in Denizli in 1941 and came to the US to pursue further education. After getting married in 1965, he graduated from İstanbul Technical University and attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology on a scholarship to finish up his second Master’s degree. He then came to the University of Washington and earned his PHD in 1970. While at UW he helped form the Turkish Student Association and went on to become president, teaching Turkish folk dances and spreading information about Turkey for tourism purposes. He became a US citizen in 1983 after becoming a permanent resident and worked at Boeing for 37 years before retiring in 2016. After coming to the US he made sure to visit his family back in Turkey every couple of years. He is a proud Muslim Turkish American man and often writes to State Representatives and Senators to advocate for Turkish and Armenian rights. He speaks Turkish at home with his family and Turkish remains his dominant language. He has found himself to be happier and healthier coming to the US.