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July 2011

July 2011 Peace through People

Welcome to the Newsletter of the Illinois Sister Cities Association (ISCA)

“Summer” has finally arrived and is a welcome event just as our April Conference was in Tinley Park. The Conference was a huge success. Starting on Friday afternoon with a great break out session and closing with a delicious dinner and knockout entertainment.

Saturday was just as eventful and full of great information in the breakout meetings. lunch was capped with a keynote speaker whose remaks were both timely and very informative. All in all I believe everyone took something good away with them that day. There was plenty of time for sharing of ideas. I noticed that many of our members were enjoying the free time to share their events with each other. This is the “HEART” of our conference.

your Board of Directors has made a couple of changes to our staff to better serve you. The Board of Directors has appointed Adrienne B. Tongate to the position of Chairman of the Conference Committee. She will be responsible for planning, developing and managing our conference programs on a state wide basis. She currently will be working with Carol Jones, Vice President on the Board of Directors and Ellen K. Mumford, Board of Directors member. They are finalizing their plans for 2012 conference in Dixon, Illinois, which looks very exciting.

President’s Message:

Dear SiSter CitieS MeMberSAdrienne resides in Chicago and is a senior manager for the Chicago Sister Cities programs.The Illinois Sister Cities Board of Directors has estab-

lished a new committee, called the youth Movement. The committee chairperson to address the youth Movement will be Holly lazzerini-Mathur, Board of Directors member. She will be the chairperson of youth Exchanges and Development. She will be responsible for facilitating youth exchanges with local chapters, identifying local chapter students’ success stories and planning, managing youth programs at the state level. Holly is well qualified for the position and has many years of experience in the education field spanning grades 1 through 12.

In closing, your Board of Directors wish each of you an enjoyable summer. Please be sure to mark your calendar for April 20 & 21st. 2012 Conference in Dixon Illinois. It will be a fun time.

Frank E. lateanoPresidentIllinois Sister Cities Association

Over

sister Cities international

CONFereNCeThe Sister Cities International

Conference was held in

Washington DC in March. The scheduling of

the conference allowed our members to visit

elected officials on Capitol Hill and talk with

them about Sister Cities.

Attendees were treated to an afternoon and

evening at the State Department, where we

were given briefings on different areas of the

world and up-to-the-minute answers were

given to our questions. A fabulous reception

on the 8th floor of the State Department

Building was enjoyed by everyone. Many

historical items were in the reception area,

including Martha Washington’s china, paintings

by American artists as well as Indian artwork,

and Thomas Jefferson’s desk.

It was a great chance to meet other Sister Cities

members from the u.S. and other countries.

Friday’s sessions were very informative, my

favorite being about social media and the other

presentation on grants.

Congratulations to the cities of Carbondale

and Chicago for earning awards at the

SCI Conference. K Sue Minott

isCa

WebSite NeWSWe are currently changing our site to be more of

a website than a blog. Please visit our updated

site and add your organization’s activities!

www.illinoissistercities.org your suggestions

and comments are welcome, please send to

Frank at flateano11@aol.com. K Frank Lateano

USA

IllInoIS

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July 2011

new PartnershiP

it’S DONeIt only took 25 years to get this done! Highland, Illinois has just recently received their incorporatin papers and are now official the Highland Sister Cities Organization (HSCO). They small but determined. So far, they have 19 members.The second weekend of June - Highland’ held its annual Schweizerfest. Their sister cities had a booth where they gave out information and make themselves known in the town. Also, they have a banner and a logo.They are sending a delegation of six citizens to Sursee, Switzerland, to participate in the Swiss National Day on August 1st. The group will arrive in Sursee on Friday, July 29th and spend the entire weekend there, seeing the sights, staying with the mayor and other city council members, and generally having a great time.They will be making a report at their first General Membership Meeting on Thursday, August 11th at Michael’s Restaruant in Highland for a German-style buffet at 6 p.m. followed by the meeting and report at 7 p.m. Josephine C. Wittenauer, SCI -Sister Cities State Coordinator

(southern) Illilnois has been invited.

K Linda Driesner

Editor:Susan Minott sminott@palatine.il.us fax: 847-359-9094 attn Susan Minott mail: 951 E. Baldwin Rd. Palatine, Il 60074Design:uwe Gsedl oova92@mac.comGsedl Graphic Design

Deadline for submiting articles for the next issue is September 15th.

MeMber benefits

WebiNar SerieS SCheDuleOne of the benefits of being a SCI member is the many trainings that are offered its members. For instance, the SCI Webinar Series.The first session of the Sister Cities International Webinar Series, Grant Writing 101, took place on May 18. The next session, How to Establish 501(c)(3) Status, will take place on June 15 at 2 p.m. EDT. To register, send your name and sister city affiliation to communications@sister-cities.org. If you missed the Grant Writing 101 Seminar, e-mail us to receive a recording of the Grant Writing 101 Webinar. Additional webinars offered in the series include:

July 20: Engaging Your Elected OfficialsAugust 17: Engaging Youth for Green Energy ProjectsSeptember 21: Making Effective Relationships LastOctober 19: Youth Engagement in Sister City ProgramsNovember 16: J-Initiative, U.S. - Japan Sister City ProgramsDecember 21: Accounting for Sister City Programs

There are several webinars scheduled for 2012 as well. For more info, please contact your state coordinator, Josephine or Sue

(scicoordiln@gmail.com or 847-358-2848). K

friendshiP

FuNHoffman Estates held its annual cooking event in April as well as their “let’s Go to the Movies” in May, to honor their French

friendship. K

Highland

SurseeSwitzerland

fundraiser

barbeCue PartyRockford held an exciting fundraiser in June, a Romanian-Hungarian Midsummer Barbecue Party, to celebrate their Sister City Relations with Cluj-Napoca, Romania and Taszr, Hungary. It was held in the Keeling-Puri Peace Plaza, offering authentic ethnic dishes and beverages plus live Romanian and

Hungarian folk dancing and music. K

exChange

tiMe SPeNttOgetherMembers of SC in urbana, Illinois drove out to attend the SCI conference in Washington DC and brought back members of its African SC to spend some

time in urbana. K

Rockford

ChangzhouChina

BorgholmSweden

Ferentinoitaly

BrovaryUkraine

TaszrhUngary

Cluj-napocaromania

Urbana

ZomBAmalawi

Hoffman Estates

AngoulêmeFranCe

USA

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July 2011

iSCa bOarD Frank e. lateano President elk grove – vacant – V. President Josephine C. wittenauer Secretary Columbia randy russell treasurer naperville Jim Chipman Board m. Springfield Carol Jones Board m. tinley Park dorothy kucera Board m. wood dale holly lazzerini-mathur Board m. Belvidere Susan minott Board m. Palatine Carol tietz Board m. dixon Carol zerkle Board m. Springfield

eduCation

bOOkS FOr CaPe COaStDuring our state conference, linda McCance-Packham accepted some early reader and picture books from Palatine, for Hanover Park’s SC Cape Coast (in Ghana) library.

Hanover Park has started a small library in its Sister City. When Palatine had a visit from Claudie Thomas from its French Sister City, Claudie brought some children’s books in French, which will also be donated to the Cape Coast’s library.

If you have any gently-used or new books to donate, please contact linda. K

isCa

State COOrDiNatOrNaMeDSince Illinois is such a long state, we have two state coordinators – Northern and Southern. Alice Whyte had been selected as State Coordinator for Northern Illinois and after passing away, Sue Minott was appointed to that position. If you need anything from Sue, please contact her at 847-358-2848 or

coordsciln@gmail.com. K

Hanover Park

Cape Coastghana

isCa

State CONFereNCeMany thanks to Randy Tietz and his committee for putting together an informative state meeting. We enjoyed the presentations as well as the time allowed to talk with other SC people at the dinner and during the Saturday event in

Tinley Park. Next year’s event will be hosted by Dixon, Illinois. K

isCa

SiSter City OF the yearPlease take a moment and complete the Sister City of the year application. We’d love to hear what your group accomplished last year! Any questions, please contact Jim Shipman at

moorechipman@aol.com. K

first tiMe

Fall StuDy For the first time, a lake Zurich High School student will spend a semester studying in Nittenau this fall. Nittenau, a town of about 8,700, is about 90 minutes from

Munich. K

lake Zurich

nittenaugermany

IllInoIS

Tinley Park Büdingengermany

mallowireland

IllInoIS

IllInoIS

PeacethroughPeoPle!

fundraiser

FOOD CONNeCtiONThe Sister Cities Association of Belvidere hosted A Taste of Sister Cities in June. They offered an all-you-can-eat buffet dinner featured American, German and French foods. Proceeds of this delicious fundraiser benefited their adult and youth cultural exchange programs. K

Belvedere

VAUx-lE-PénIlFranCe

Schwieberdingengermany

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July 2011The ReporterSusan Minott951 E. Baldwin Rd.Palatine 60074

Springfield

AshikagaJaPan

San PedromexiCo

Bartlett

miaolitaiwan

ISCA mISSIon STATEmEnT:

Promote Peace Through Mutual Respect, Understanding And Cooperation - One Individual, One Community At A Time.

JaPan disaster

$32,000 FrOM the aShikagaDiSaSter relieFFuNDIn true Sister Cities style, Spring-field stepped up to help its Sister after Japan was hit by the tsunami disaster this spring. Jennie Claflin, president of the Sister Cities Association of Springfield, said $32,000 was wired to Springfield’s sister city of Ashikaga, which accepted more than 100 families who were evacuated from the area near the nuclear power plant. The money will help cover costs not paid for by the national government of Japan. “We are very moved and gratified by the response that we’ve gotten,” Claflin said.

The fund-raising effort was announced March 17. A number of events have been held throughout Springfield to help raise money, including a “Jeans for Japan Day,” during which city employees could wear jeans in exchange

for a donation of at least $5 each.

K Carol Zerkle

Cultural exChange

Mark thebegiNNiNgTo mark Bartlett becoming a Sister City with Miaoli City, Taiwan, the Village held a reception in early December, at the Bartlett Village Hall. The Bartlett International Chorus and Chicago Hakka Chorus, who went to Miaoli in a cultural exchange trip, performed in December.

This event offered a chance to taste some authentic Hakka food. Dignitaries from Taiwan were on hand to meet residents. A photo exhibit of the cultural exchange trip was on display through-out the

month of December. K

Palatine / ChiCago / hanover Park

SuMMer eVeNtSPAlAtiNe is sending an actor and poet to its French SC for a week of activities scheduled in Fontenay-le-Comte with its 5 Sister Cities. Other members of Palatine SC will also attend.The 6th Annual ChiCAgO Sister Cities International Festival will transform Daley Plaza into an international village filled with food, music, dance and merchants, August 8-12, 2011.  All 28 sister cities will be represented at the festival, where visitors will be able to sample international cuisine and view live cultural performances. When: August 8-12 Where: Daley Plaza For more info, menus and entertainment schedule, visit www.chicagosistercities.com. hANOver PArk enjoyed a visit from the mayor

of its Mexican SC, Valparaiso. K

the iSCA BOArD