L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2015 www.italoamericano.com L'Italo-Americano 5 Sister Cities in Our Own Backyards W h o s a y s t h e w o r l d i s shrinking? Just about everyone! H o w e v e r , a t a p e m e a s u r e d placed precisely at the equator w o u l d r e v e a l t h a t n o a c t u a l shrinkage has occurred over the past thousand years. So, why is it that most of us "feel" in closer p r o x i m i t y t o o u r c o l l e a g u e s across the globe? More than likely it is because of our amaz- ing and ever-evolving techno- logical devices. We can easily connect with our paesani thou- sands of miles away. In other words, our Italian sister cities are right in our own backyards, just one key stroke or dial tone away. So what is a Sister City? F o u n d e d b y P r e s i d e n t Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956, Sister Cities International is a 501(c) (3) nonpartisan nonprofit serving as the national member- ship organization for individual sister cities, counties, and states across the United States. The network has united more than 2,000 cities across the globe. Eisenhower envisioned the orga- n i z a t i o n a s a c h a m p i o n f o r peace and prosperity by foster- ing bonds between different cul- tures. These partnerships have fostered grants, programs to expand trade and tourism and some economic analysts suggest the sister city model can invigo- rate urban economic develop- ment. A sister city, county, or state relationship is a long-term part- nership between two communi- ties in two countries. A city may have any number of sister cities, with community involvement ranging from a half dozen to hundreds of volunteers. Sister city relationships offer the flexi- b i l i t y t o f o r m c o n n e c t i o n s between communities that are mutually beneficial and which address issues that are most rele- vant for partners. W h a t i s a S i s t e r C i t y Organization? Each sister city organization is independent and pursues the activities and thematic areas that are relevant to them and their community, including munici- pal, business, trade, educational a n d c u l t u r a l e x c h a n g e s w i t h their sister city and offers end- less opportunities ranging from cultural exchange programs to shared research and develop- ment projects between cities. M e m b e r s h i p i n S i s t e r C i t i e s International is open to all U.S. cities. T h e e a r l i e s t k n o w n t o w n twinning in Europe was between Paderborn, Germany, and Le Mans, France, in the year 836. Currently, California leads all U.S. states with the largest num- ber of sister cities at 368, fol- lowed by Florida with a distance 185. Bay Area Sister Cities O f c o u r s e o n e o f S a n Francisco's most treasured sister city relationships is with Assisi, Italy. L o o k a t t h e s e t w o p h o - t o g r a p h s o f S a n F r a n c i s c o ' s North Beach and Telegraph Hill and that of Assisi Italy. There really is a striking similarity between them, is there not? It's no surprise that a city n a m e d a f t e r I t a l i a n b o r n S t . Francis would reach out to form a bond with San Francisco thou- sands of miles away. That bond was officially established in 1969 with the small hill town of A s s i s i , h o m e t o G i o v a n n i d i P i e t r o d i B e r n a r d o n e , a l s o k n o w n a s S a i n t F r a n c i s , a n I t a l i a n C a t h o l i c f r i a r a n d founder of the Franciscan order. Over the years San Franciscans have organized special programs and resources for the restoration of Assisi's buildings which were damaged in recent years by an earthquake. I n A u g u s t 2 0 0 8 S a n Francisco's link to its Italian sis- t e r c i t y g r e w f i r m e r w h e n a replica of the shrine of the Saint F r a n c i s o f A s s i s i , i n c l u d i n g eight frescoes was installed at t h e S a i n t F r a n c i s o f A s s i s i c h u r c h i n N o r t h B e a c h . T h e original chapel was built 800 years ago in Assisi, in Italy's U m b r i a r e g i o n . S t . F r a n c i s C h u r c h i s d e s i g n a t e d S a n Francisco Landmark No. 5, and has stood in North Beach since the mid-1850s. S a n F r a n c i s c o s c u l p t r e s s Harriet Moore's monumental bronze of St. Francis of Assisi w a s a c c e p t e d f o r p l a c e m e n t upon the Piazza Teatro Lyrick in Santa Maria degli Angeli, Italy by the mayor and municipal arts council of Assisi (Comune di A s s i s i ) . M o o r e ' s c r e a t i o n depicts a modernistic St. Francis as a leaf dancing in the wind. This statue was presented on b e h a l f o f t h e S i s t e r C i t y Association of the City of San Francisco and Artists´ Embassy International, and was dedicated October 4, 2001. Probably lesser known is the p a r t n e r s h i p b e t w e e n W a l n u t Creek in Contra Costa County and none other than Noceto, Italy. How cool is that twinning since "noce" is Italian for wal- nut! In 1986 then Noceto Mayor Francesco Barocelli reached out to the City of Walnut Creek in order to explore a sister city relationship between the two communities whose link is the w o r d w a l n u t . T h e b o n d w a s solidified when a delegation of citizens from Walnut Creek's Italian sister city of Noceto was w e l c o m e d b y W a l n u t C r e e k Mayor Sue Rainey during an official visit at City Hall on April 13, 2007. A group of 15 Noceto residents, led by Mayor Faio Fecci, were the guests of honor at a dinner where Mayor Fecci presented the City with a sculpture of a lyre as Noceto's g i f t f o r t h e n e w d o w n t o w n Walnut Creek Library. I s y o u r c i t y o n t h e l i s t below? If not make it happen! In addition to San Francisco and Assisi, Walnut Creek and Noceto, other Bay Area cities have partnered with Italy includ- i n g O a k l a n d w i t h L i v o r n o , Vallejo with La Spezia, Sonoma w i t h G r e v e , S o u t h S a n F r a n c i s c o w i t h L u c c a , Cupertino with Copertino, and Santa Clara County with the Province of Florence. If you don't see your city a m o n g s t t h o s e m e n t i o n e d above, propose an Italian sister city for your town, county or state. If you see your city listed above, take the opportunity to volunteer in the Sister City pro- g r a m . W h a t b e t t e r w a y t o o f f e r y o u r " I t a l i a n - n e s s " ! Membership in Sister Cities International is open to cities of all sizes, counties, states, inter- national cities, and individuals. For more information on form- ing a sister city or volunteering to assist with an ongoing "rela- tionship" go to http://www.sis- tercities. org, e-mail info@sis- tercities. org, or phone 202-347- 8630. CATHERINE ACCARDI Piero Selvaggio San Francisco's North Beach & Telegraph Hill. Photograph by Mario Savoia Assisi, Italy. Photograph by Canadastock

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