Ömür Özdemir had a private business with her husband. After getting divorced; she entered a hard life with her daughter İdil.  The heavy debt left from the private business caused economic problems for her. She began to sell apricots of her hometown to overcome her economic problems. “Don’t turn back even if an avalanche engulfs your way,” she told women despite her difficult journey.

ZEYNEP PEHLİVAN

Izmir- Almost everyone living in the Karşıyaka district of Izmir province knows who Ömür Özdemir is. This always smiling, positive woman has been earning her living by selling apricots she brings from her hometown, Malatya. Ömür doesn’t want to sell any products that she doesn’t know. For this reason, she always travels between Izmir and Malatya to sell apricots on her stall at the farm market. This is the visible part of her story for everyone who knows her more or less in Izmir.

“If you don’t make their own way, you can suddenly find nowhere to go”

Ömür Özdemir was born into a farming family in Malatya, 1978. She lived in her village until third grade. Then, her family decided to move to Malatya city center. Ömür had to spend her summers in the village and winters in the city center. When she won university in Mersin, she left her hometown for the first time. Ömür studied tourism in Mersin worked for a big telecommunication company. She met a man at the workplace and then got married to him. They started their own business. They worked together for 10 years. After their divorce, she began to live with her daughter İdil (5).

“There were many positive and negative parts of working with your spouse. After our divorce, I found myself completely broke and unemployed. The reason for my situation was working for my husband’s shop and having no economic freedom. Always people in our society say, ‘Work with your spouse, there is no difference between you”, I was living in such a family, economically dependent on my husband. I learned how all these things I was told were nonsense when I was left alone with my five-and-a-half-year-old daughter. If you don’t make your own way, build your life depending on your husband, you suddenly find nowhere to go.”

She began by selling two bags of apricots

Ömür applied to many jobs in Malatya to build her life again. Suddenly, she found herself attending a course organized by the UN. Her entrepreneurial spirit was noticed by the project coordinator in a short time and she was immediately appointed as an assistant. Then she took training courses in Ankara and she became a trainer in Malatya. She met many women during that process and she released that the stories of all women were similar to her story. As Ömür was rebuilding her life, she faced her ex-husband's loan debts taken under her name.

“I faced executions due to my ex-husband’s loan debts. I began to live on 100 Turkish Lira per month. I became a woman, who always pays debts. My ex-husband didn’t care about our daughter and that situation negatively affected my daughter and she had an epileptic attack. The doctor told me, “We somehow heal your daughter with treatments, drugs; but you should get rid of this marsh!” I understood what the doctor meant. My daughter was very affected by what we went through and that was the only reason for the attack. That speech was a turning point for me. I left my job and began to take care of my daughter. I went to my village to collect apricots and I decided to sell apricots to stand on my own legs. I began to work by selling two bags of apricots (50 kilos) in Akçay. It is a tourist place and I sold them. I felt very happy after months.”

Ömür joins local fairs to sell apricots

Ömür now has a stall named after her daughter and she regularly joins local fairs to sell apricots.

“I have changed a lot during my journey. I learned how to be clear without doubts. I know that I can stand on my own legs wherever I go. Doing this includes great responsibilities and also loneliness but you learn how to deal with these. Women should know that they shouldn’t turn back even if an avalanche engulfs their way.”