SISTER

CITY NEWS

HAMM, GERMANY

WUXI, CHINA

GIVATAYIM, ISRAEL

NIZHNII TAGIL, RUSSIA

GANGNEUNG, SOUTH KOREA

March 2004

DINNER GATHERING WITH HAMM GUESTS

6:00 pm, Sunday, April 4^th

Bessie Smith Hall

· A Sister City gathering with our Hamm guests will be held from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm in the historic African-American Museum (directions below).

· Come enjoy a Southern cooked meal of pork BBQ, smoked chicken, etc. etc. etc. Listen to our musical entertainment.

· Join us for an evening of camaraderie with our Hamm friends!

· Enjoy a casual walk through the history of Chattanooga’s African-American community.

RESERVATIONS ARE A MUST!

Please RSVP Vivian Hershey at 825-1040 by March 31^st to confirm your attendance.

Cost: $12.50 at the door (includes museum admission).

Directions to Bessie Smith Hall:

· From Highway 27 take downtown Chattanooga Exit 1A.

· Exit Right onto M.L. King Boulevard.

· Continue 5 blocks on M.L. King Boulevard to the African-American Museum

(200 MLK Blvd) which will be on your right.

Hamm Visit Saturday, April 3^rd to April 9^th

Our Hamm guests will be arriving at the Chattanooga Airport Saturday evening, April 3^rd and departing for Savannah, GA Saturday morning, April 9^th. There will be twenty-three Hamm visitors, including:

Dr. Eric and Annette Daelman

Erwin and Dr. Elisabeth Menne

Marianne Huelshoff

Friedrich Droste

Manfred Strathaus

Brigitte Schreiber

Christel Helmig

Anja Helmig (daughter of Christel)

Ruediger and Irmgard Poppe

Juergen and Elke Schoenmakers

Robert and Gerda Rand

Anne Koch

Ulf Bergenthal

Alexander Bergenthal (son of Ulf)

Mathilde Hense

Bernhard Winters and Maria - Anna Metzelaers

Gabi Schmidt

Our Hamm guests will be visiting the Mayor’s office and being introduced at the City Council meeting on Tuesday evening. During the course of the week they will be enjoying our local historic, cultural, and tourist attractions. Some of the highlights of their stay will include a visit to the Hunter, Chattanooga African-American, and Regional History Museums, the Tennessee Aquarium, the Chickamauga Battlefield, a Southern Belle cruise, and some hiking.

We should give special thanks to the Mayor’s Office, particularly Shirley Pond and Todd Womack for helping with our Hamm guest plans. Christine Bock, a sister city member, was instrumental in arranging visits to area attractions. Karen Claypool and Vivian Hershey are especially appreciated for the many hours spent in planning and coordinating this trip.

Please join us at the African-American Museum/Bessie Smith Hall at 6:00 pm on Sunday, April 4^th to welcome our Hamm visitors.

From the Desk of Bill Prince

A brief highlight of some of our activities follows:

Visit the Sister Cities Exhibit, 3rd floor of the Bicentennial Library

Yuen Lee, chair of our ad hoc exhibits committee, has been working with Bill Bolen, Vivian Hershey, and Bill Prince on identifying a location for our sister city memorabilia. Locations under consideration: local malls, the Visitor’s Center, the Airport and the Public Library.

After collecting sister city memorabilia from the Mayor’s Office, Gene Hyde, Seong Glickman, and Peggy Wright, Yuen and Bill P. set up a six month exhibit for Wuxi, Nizhnii Tagil, and Gangneung. Exhibits for Hamm & Givatayim are still in process. Many thanks to Diane Harvey, Head, Fine Arts Department & Mary Helms, Head, Local History and Genealogy Department for assisting with exhibits.

Sabbatical Leave Request from Kangnung National University faculty member

A faculty member, who is teaching in the public policy area at the Department of Local Administration of Kangnung National University, has applied for sabbatical leave to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Zehava Mirkin, Sister City Ambassador to Givatayim, Israel

Zehava Mirkin, a 3rd generation Israeli citizen and resident of Chattanooga, is returning to her home overlooking Givatayim. She is enthusiastic about serving as our ambassador to Givatayim during her stay in our sister city. Zehava and her granddaughter, a Givatayim resident and lawyer, will be visiting Givatayim city officials and schools in an effort to identify students interested in applying for the exchange program at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Thank you for your Support

Many thanks to our below listed members who have submitted their dues for 2004. We appreciate your support and hope that you will be able to participate in some of our international functions. In an effort to improve communication via email, please send your email address to our Membership Chair, Dianne T. Oliver <jdtOliver@comcast.net>

Richard Arnold

Tom & Nancy Bibler

Mrs. C.F. Boeninger

Bill Bolen

Ronni & Chaim Charyn

Betsy & Allen Chesney

Karen Claypool

Betty Cooper

Alan Derthick

Kyra Dobler

Mr. & Mrs. Larry Duncan

Georgia Eastman

Mrs. Jim Eberle

Dr. Lucien Ellington

Mr. & Mrs. G. Wayne Fleck

Dr. Jon Friedl

Mr. & Mrs. John Geerlings

Drs. Jeff & Monique Gefter

Seong Glickman

Michael Goode

Vivian & Marty Hershey

Mary Holland

Gene Hyde

Mr. & Mrs. Hugh Jackson

Dr. Joseph Jackson

Connie Janey

Ed Kirzner

Mr. & Mrs. Frank Knight

Beth Krabbendam

Robert McDonald II

Frederick Lankford

Dr. & Mrs. Stewart Lawwill, Jr.

Yuen Lee

Mr. & Mrs. Larry Miller

Greg Momney

Dianne T. Oliver

Terrance Olsen

Marge & Ronald Pasch

Mr. & Mrs. Tom Peck

Mr. & Mrs. Charles Pierce

Bill & Nancy Prince

Dmitriy & Holly Proshkin

Mr. & Mrs. Joe Ridolfo

Ms. Mary Lucille Sharp

Mr. & Mrs. Mark Shimmel

Drs. Stephanie & Clint Smullen

Kathy Sok

Dr. Bill Stacy

Dr. Robert Stanley

Larry Taylor

Jean Troy

Theresa Van Wickler

Mr. & Mrs. W. Veazey

Dr. Tom & Linda Voychehovski

Fred Williamson

Dr. Jane Womack

John & Peggy Wright

Nizhnii Tagil Trip Planned

We are planning a trip to Nizhnii Tagil, Russia this summer. Several board members will be going, including Allen Chesney, Vivian and Martin Hershey, Ron and Marge Pasch, and Bill and Nancy Prince. After joining in the celebrations of Nizhnii Tagil City Day on August 17th, we will see the city and surrounding area and then spend time in Moscow and St. Petersburg. We are also working on putting together a trip in November for ecological specialists from Chattanooga to support ecological clean up efforts in Nizhnii Tagil. They will also aid in ecological education.

Reported by Rob McDonald, Nizhnii Tagil Vice-President, jrhmcd2@bellsouth.net

A Photographic Trip to Givatayim, Israel

I arrived in Israel on Thursday January 29^th. From Jerusalem, I boarded a bus and arrived in Giva tayim on Wednesday, February 3rd. As the bus entered the city limits, I began to take photos of cafes, fruit stands, shops, buildings, billboards, and people walking along the streets. My destination was City Hall and my purpose to see the Mayor. When I arrived, I was asked to wait in a boardroom next to the Mayor’s office. The hospitality of his office staff was very welcoming. After 15 minutes and a delightful cup of tea, it was my turn to see the Mayor. I requested assistance in taking pictures of his city for the Sister City Association in Chattanooga.

One of the Mayor’s assistants was appointed to take me on a photographic tour of the City on Sunday, February 14^th. Unfortunately, the dates were postponed and both the Mayor’s assistant and I were going out of town before we could take the tour. We both knew the pictures were important, so we came up with a plan. He would get ten or so pictures taken of his city as soon as he returned, burn them onto a CD, and mail them to me. The following pictures are the result of my trip.

Greg Momney

Beit Kobi Provides Israeli Soldiers With a Home

In December 2003, Chattanoogans Chaim and Ronni Charyn visited Israel as part of olev, a program to build ties between Israeli and American religious schoolteachers. On this Federation-sponsored trip, the Charyns also visited their son Jesse and the city of Givatayim.

Although we wanted to spend as much time with Jesse as possible, he is now in the Israeli army and his days are spent training. We filled our extra time by visiting Chattanooga’s sister city of Givatayim. This was not our first visit with Mayor Stenzler in his delightful hamlet, just ten minutes outside of Tel Aviv. We have visited him on many occasions when visiting our sons, who each have been part of Hadassah’s Year Course.

Givatayim is a small city. The streets are lined with lush green trees and lovely flowers that beckon visitors. Our itinerary this week was filled with many interesting stops including a senior center filled with 80 spry individuals, some playing cards and bingo, and others enjoying lectures and crafts. Chaim and I also visited a shelter for mentally challenged people and a state-of-the-art science and technology center. We also spent a lovely afternoon with an elderly couple. He is a sculptor who is nearing 90 and she, a youthful 85, is preparing for a one-woman exhibit in Givatayim this April.

The most amazing place we visited was Beit Kobi (the House of Kobi). Ze‘avaha, the Assistant Mayor, told us our lives would be different after visiting Beit Kobi and visiting Kobi’s mother and we were intrigued.

On March 10, 2002, Kobi Ichelbom was killed in Netzazim while on duty. Kobi was an exceptional fighter and commander in the Givati Brigade who was lit up with love for his family, friends, and country. Beit Kobi was founded immediately following the tragedy to pass on the light to soldiers who need it the most. For the 6,000 soldiers who serve in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and do not have family close by (such as our Jesse), Beit Kobi is a life raft. It serves as a home base—a place to see a familiar face at the end of an army tyual (trek) or a familiar return address on a package of much needed items.

Beit Kobi was established in July 2002 when members of Kobi’s unit took an old, dirty, dilapidated hovel and turned it into a modern three-bedroom apartment for lonely soldiers. Today three soldiers enjoy a real home at Beit Kobi. Beit Kobi in Givatayim will serve as a model for additional homes of its kind being developed in other Israeli cities.

Kobi Ichelbom noted, “It is not difficult to become a good soldier, with a home and family like mine. The real challenge is to take someone who has a tough life and elevate them.” Thanks to family members, friends, and volunteers at Beit Kobi, Kobi’s heart continues to beat in the chests of lonely soldiers in Israel.

Reported by Ronni Charyn, Givatayim Vice-President