HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/26/2006 SCC minutes
MOUNT PROSPECT SISTER CITIES COMMISSION
Minutes
Januarv 26. 2006
Members Present:
Tokiko Blaine
Carole Bloomquist
Gerald Farley
Janice Farley
John Kom
Dorothy Kucera
Gary Randant
Mary Ann Sibrava
Judy Thome
Rachel Toeppen
Members Absent:
Adelaide Thulin
Guest:
Reta Brudd, Illinois
Sister Cities
Staff Liaison:
Maura E1 Metennani
The meeting was called to order at 5:30 p.m.
Chairperson Dorothy Kucera introduced newest member of the Sister Cities Commission, Gary
Randant.
Dorothy also introduced Reta Brudd of the Illinois Sister Cities Chapter was present to speak to
the Commission.
State/National Conventions
Reta discussed the State Convention, to be held April 28 and 29 in Springfield. The State
Chapter will be donating a peace pole to the state in memory of Board members who have
passed away. There will be tours of Springfield, workshops and a best practices showcase. The
room rate is $89/night. The Conference fee will be between $60-$70.
The National Convention will be held in Washington DC July 13-15. In 2009 they are planning
on holding the convention in an international location.
French Salons
Dorothy announced that she had scheduled a French Salon for February 21 at the Huber Home.
Skip Farley will be giving a presentation on French participation in the American Revolution.
Wine and cheese will be served and there will be a French dessert presentation by Chef Tual.
Rachel Toeppen suggested that it was important to have a meeting that was open to the public to
invite the community to learn about Sister Cities. She suggested having a brochure that the
Commission could give to people who were interested in Sister Cities. She suggested having
speakers go out to organizations and show the video of Sevres. Staff will get a quote for printing
costs and Rachel will work with staff to develop a brochure.
High School Exchange
Each Rotary club donated $1000 for the exchange.
Quilt
The quilt is now on display at the Library. Staff will draft a letter formalizing this agreement.
Speaker
Reta Brudd from Illinois Sister Cities spoke with the Commission about the Sister Cities
organization and her experience in Tinley Park. She gave a brief history of the SCI program.
There are 67 Illinois communities that have Sister Cities.
She provided some resources for visits:
· Kathleen Houlihan is the Sister Cities liaison for the City of Chicago.
. Performing groups - State of Illinois Building - permission from Governor's office
· Chicago Convention and Tourist Bureau
· Navy Pier
They are preparing for visit in May. Since the first exchange, the visiting group pays most of
their expenses. They had 150 visitors in the first exchange. The next trip, they had 300 visitors.
They had 108 host families in 18 communities. They stayed for two weeks. Visitors wore buttons
identifying themselves, and laminated ill cards with their name and the address of their host
family in case they got lost. 3 people on the Committee were "on call" with pagers. They
matched hosts with guests using a questionnaire. All travelers paid $15 to help defray cost of
reception. They had "day families" for people who wanted to participate but couldn't host. They
had ads in newspapers asking for host families. They have a "Friends of Sister Cities" group who
pay a membership of $20 year.
The next meeting date is March 16.
The meeting adjourned at 7:06 p.m.