As Türkiye celebrates its centenary this Sunday, one of the most festive places to visit is a two-story house in northwestern Edirne. The house, dedicated to the "father of all Turks," Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, is converted into a museum by a pensioner Mukaddes Kokeralp Çırak.
The clocks in Çırak's house still show the moment modern Türkiye's founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk died in 1938.
So do the calendars and many other trinkets dedicated to the man who built a brand-new nation out of the Ottoman Empire's ruins 100 years ago.
"He gave us the republic as a gift," the 85-year-old said, pointing to a statue of Atatürk seated in an armchair in her living room.
After a lifetime of hard work in Germany, the mother of two returned to Türkiye in 1985. She began collecting objects related to Atatürk upon her husband's death.
Çırak paid for some items and gathered others, such as calendars and notebooks featuring Atatürk that have been released by banks and even the army through the years.
Her house is now a living tribute to Atatürk, its walls and even facade and garden emblazoned with portraits, photos and other tributes to the onetime field marshal.
Her garage serves as a warehouse for all the photos she no longer has room to hang. She dusts them regularly.
Çırak said her passion came from her great-grandfather, whose family was close to Mustafa Kemal's in Thessaloniki, a Greek port city that was once part of the Ottoman Empire where Atatürk was born.
The family met Türkiye's future hero when he was still an officer in the Ottoman Army, where he was doing his military service.
Çırak never misses official commemorative ceremonies and frequently visits schools to talk about Atatürk with younger generations.
She wants her collection to be donated to a museum after her death for Türkiye's benefit and the rest of the world.
