I usually don't post serious matters on this blog, but I want to make an exception for my friend Erol Atakkaan's father Namik Atakaan. By coincidence, I had just moved to nearby Reidsville, NC, a few months ago. I had been in contact with Erol, who lives in Los Angeles but once lived in Charlotte, for a while. I got word from the Turkish American Association of NC that Namik Atakkaan had suffered a heart attack. The name sounded familiar but I did not realize it was indeed Erol's later until a few days ago. Alas, even before I recieved a group email from Erol, I found out that Namik bey had passed away.
Namik Atakkaan was 81. He passed away at Moses Cone hospital in Greensboro, NC on June 27.
He is survived by Erol, three daugthers,two son-in-laws, his fiance Linda Sewell, and six grandchildren in addition to other relatives in Turkey.
He moved to the United States in 1952. Like my late father, Mehmet Gokbudak, he attended the University of Michigan. Although I would doubt they would have met since my father graduated from Ann Arbor in 1949. Mr. Atakkaan was awarded a master's degree in engineering. He later taught math, electronics, engineering, computers and pysics at various institutions.
Namik Atakkaan was also an accomplished piano player and ballroom dancer.And, he was a long-time member of the Turkish American Association in NC (ATA-NC).
Funeral services for Mr. Atakkaan will be held in Istanbul. There will be a local memorial service in Greensboro at a later time.
Information for this blog entry was taken from the obituary for Namik Atakaan which ran in the Sunday, July 2 edition of the News-Record, the local newspaper in Greensboro.
Condolences to the family may be sent through the Hanes Lineberry Funeral home via email at haneslineberryfh@aol.com
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