Ishik Camoglu

Camoglu, Ishik
Ishik Camoglu, July 29th 1955 - May 10th 2014, passed away the day before Mother's Day after a long and willful eleven-year fight with breast cancer. She was age 58. Ishik is survived by her two children, Eser and Etkin. In Turkish, Ishik means light, incandescent energy, ray of inspiration, beacon of excellence. But the subtle dynamism is lost in translation; the cosmic complexity of a star can never be replicated by our meager words. Her inner beauty can only be touched upon and never truly told for what she was and always will be - Ishik, not a candle in the wind, but the solar force behind our feeble whims. Ishik will be remembered for her brilliance in business, her astute advocacy in international affairs, and her passion in philanthropy. Born in Istanbul, Turkey, Ishik earned her dual B.A and M.A.in Political Science from The University of Chicago ('78) and continued her PhD studies at Columbia University's School of International Affairs. A contributing writer to the Turkish Times, Ishik was a valued expert on Turkish-US and Turkish-EU socio-political and economic relations. In the asset allocation and wealth management business for over twenty years, Ishik worked with Bankers Trust, Credit Suisse, and Deutsche Bank, and consistently outperformed the S&P500. From 1991-20001 Ishik and her husband Tevhit Camoglu spearheaded Capital and Security Enterprises, Inc., a portfolio management and venture capital firm headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. From 1985 to 2003 Ishik was the chief-executive and owner of C&G Agri, Inc., an agricultural export business where she was partners with Continental Grain. In 2000 Ishik sold C&G Agri to CGB, Japan's largest farmers' export cooperative. Over the past 20 years, Ishik served on the boards of cultural, educational, and artistic organizations' in Arizona, New York and Aspen. An active fund raiser for the Phoenix Symphony, Ballet Arizona, and the Arizona Museum of Science and Technology, Ishik also served as a trustee and a chairwoman for the Artistic Committee of Ballet Arizona and contributed extensively to the development of the Ballet Arizona Academy. Nationally and internationally Ishik was a member of numerous organizations including the Aspen Institute, Network 20/20, the Phoenix Committee on Foreign Relations, The School of American Ballet in New York City, the Center for Talented Youth of Johns Hopkins University as well as the UN Association of NY. Ishik's charitable awards include the Executive Spirit of Philanthropy Award from the National Society of Fund Raising. But Ishik's vivacity fails to be faithfully verbalized. Her everyday elegance can never be represented with equal eloquence. Her unflinching loyalty in friendship and endless devotion in motherhood, impossible to eulogize. The recollection of her luminous love of life, will always remain within us to remind us of her limitless, lion-hearted lullaby. A memorial service will be held for Ishik in Scottsdale, Arizona on October 4th. Please RSVP via email to memorial@ishikcamoglu.com for details.