#VeteranOfTheDay Army Veteran Murat Akaydin

On his birthday, today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Army Veteran Murat Akaydin, who served for three years on active duty and two years in the National Guard.

While a high schooler, Murat Akaydin founded a club to dispel harmful misconceptions about Muslims in the aftermath of 9/11. His community-mindedness also propelled him to serve as an SAT tutor and mentor to many over the years.

He brought this skillset with him when he joined the U.S. Army. During his time, he served with Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion for the 101st Airborne Division from 2009-2012. During his time with the 101st, he deployed to Regional Command East in Afghanistan from May 2010 to May 2011.

Following his discharge, Akaydin joined the New York Army National Guard from October 2012 to October 2014. He used his GI Bill to help him pay for college and graduated from American Military University summa cum laude with a bachelor of business administration in IT management. He later graduated with distinction from The City University of New York John Jay with a master of public administration in public policy and administration. Akaydin also became certified in project management, IT service management and business analysis.

Currently, Akaydin has been working at the NYC Campaign Finance Board, serving as the production team’s project lead for new ranked choice voting projects and support for digital and print voter guides. In this role, he has supported the board’s goal of fair, inclusive and open city elections during one of the largest elections in the city’s history.

Akaydin continues to revitalize and invigorate the community by serving at food kitchens. He is also in more than 30 community projects across the city, including workshops improving financial literacy or entrepreneurship.

Thank you for your service!

Nominate a Veteran for #VeteranOfTheDay

Do you want to light up the face of a special Veteran? Have you been wondering how to tell your Veteran they are special to you? VA’s #VeteranOfTheDay social media feature is an opportunity to highlight your Veteran and his/her service.

It’s easy to nominate a Veteran. Visit our blog post about nominating to learn how to create the best submission.

Contributors

Writer: Allie White

Editor: Annabelle Colton

Graphic artist: Kiki Kelley