ilker Altınoğlu

June 10, 1949 – February 22, 2024

İlker Altınoğlu passed away unexpectedly on February 22, 2024 in Arlington, VA at the age of 74. İlker was born in Salihli, Turkey on June 10, 1949. He went to high school at Robert College in Istanbul (1968), obtained a bachelor of science (Boğaziçi University (1972) and masters (University of Colorado Boulder, 1973) in mechanical engineering, and earned his doctorate in economics in 1981 (Hacettepe University, Ankara). He married Feza Altınoğlu (née Tüzün) in 1978, and together they moved to Sydney, Australia in 1982 after the birth of their first son, Erhan. Their second son, Levent, was born in 1988, after which the family moved to Scottsdale, Arizona in 1994. Feza died tragically in a car accident in 2002. In 2005, İlker published a book of poems in Turkish dedicated to her memory entitled Feza'ya Seslenişler. In 2018, he moved to Arlington to be close to Levent. 

İlker was a deeply compassionate and humble person and was known for his sincere kindness and warm smile. He was independent-minded and had a principled character and exceptional integrity. An avid reader, he had a lifelong passion for learning and spent much of his time reading and contemplating moral and political philosophy. He fostered a deep understanding of the human condition and loved to engage in lively discussion about social issues and human nature. The greatest beneficiaries of his unconditional love, his principled character, and his intellectual merit are his children. His grandchildren, Ayla (4) and Eydın (1), brought him immense pride and joy in the final years of his life.

İlker is survived by his sons, Erhan and Levent, their respective spouses Sarah and Leslynette, Erhan's two young children, and his sister İmrel and family. He will be placed next to Feza in Scottsdale, Arizona in a private ceremony. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in honor of İlker to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society - a charity which he and Feza supported over the years.