Raindrop Foundation hosts tenth annual Turkish Festival

On Saturday, May 3, the Raindrop Foundation Turkish Cultural Center will host its tenth annual Albuquerque Turkish Festival.

Festival organizer Joseph Karatoprak said, “It’s going to be a day full of culture, arts, flavors and fun.”

“Participants will have a chance to try delicious Turkish dishes like shish kebab, gyro, lahmacun, gözleme, kofta, fresh salads and much more,” he said. “Whenever Turkish culture is involved, there is absolutely food involved.”

Other vendors will serve freshly brewed Turkish tea and coffee, which Karatoprak said are perennial crowd favorites, in addition to a wide selection of desserts and sweets, such as baklava and the sweet cheese pastry known as künefe.

Beyond sampling sweet and savory foods, festival goers will have the chance to experience live performances by traditional Turkish musicians and dancers, including a demonstration by a Turkish-born, Dallas-based whirling dervish Onur Kasaburi.

The whirling dervish tradition, also known as Sufi turning, was started by the medieval Persian poet Rumi, who composed many of his mystical poems while turning in circles. Whirling dervishes spin to dissolve their egos and achieve a spiritual union with the divine. It’s a practice that requires extensive training so as not to be affected by motion-induced vertigo, and Kasaburi’s mastery of coordination and balance is acclaimed.

At arts and crafts tables throughout the fair, traditional artisans will demonstrate Turkish crafts, such as calligraphy and water marbling.

“We will also have a kids’ play zone packed with fun activities to keep the little ones entertained,” Karatoprak said.

Karatoprak estimated the local Turkish community to be around 80 or 90 families.

“Around 20 of them are really active with our nonprofit, the Raindrop Foundation, and most of the work is done by just these 20 families,” he said. “But we have many local friends helping us, which makes our job easier to organize such a festival.”

The Raindrop Foundation is a nonprofit cultural organization founded by Turkish Americans in New Mexico in 2010.

“The main goal of Raindrop is to promote friendship and understanding of different cultures through easily accessible activities that we do,” Karatoprak said. “We have language classes, cooking classes, Sunday brunches, friendship dinners, charity events and festivals like this one.”

While Raindrop’s events help the local Turkish community maintain their cultural traditions, they have become even more popular with non-Turkish New Mexicans, which Karatoprak said is part of the foundation’s mission.

“Most of our participants are our local friends,” he said. “The main goal for us is to bring people together from different cultures and have them sit around a table together and have that kind of (positive) interaction.”

Karatoprak said he is excited to see more New Mexicans learning about Turkish culture every year and experiencing the warmth of Turkish hospitality.

“There is always such a warm, joyful energy at the festival,” he said. “Every year, our festival grows a little bigger, and we are always seeing new faces and new families enjoying the event, which is very heartwarming.”

Raindrop Foundation hosts tenth annual Turkish Festival