Turkish couple donated wedding feast to Syrian refugees

A Turkish couple donated the money they would have spent on a wedding reception to feed Syrian refugees in the south of the country last week.

Fethullah Üzümcüoğlu and Esra Polat shared a meal with 4,000 Syrian refugees in the south-central city of Kilis.

A spokeswoman for the Turkey-based charity Kimse Yok Mu (KYM) told the Washington Post that the idea came from the groom’s father who is an active volunteer with the organisation.

Ali Üzümcüoğlu thought that hosting a banquet for family and friends was “unnecessary” when people living “next door” were in need of food. He presented the idea to his son, who agreed.

“I’m very happy that he accepted it and they started their new happy journey with such a selfless action,” the father said, according to KYM spokeswoman Hatice Avci.

Kilis is home to tens of thousands of refugees who are fleeing war-torn Syria, according to local media. Turkey has hosted most than one million Syrian refugees since the start of the uprising in 2011.

Click here to read MEMO‘s exclusive interview with Receq Rahraman, manager of the soup kitchen which the couple volunteered at and donated to. Images and video from facebook.