Clearwater sister‑cities group discusses Nagano program expansion, seeks homestays; elects officers

The Clearwater Sister Cities Commission discussed expanding cultural, culinary and educational exchanges with Nagano, Japan, and a new French partner and re‑elected officers during its meeting.

Commission members said the expansions could include art exchanges, culinary demonstrations, sustainability and gardening programs, short internships for students and extended in‑school time for visiting high school students — and the commission asked staff to prepare more detailed proposals and venue plans.

The discussion matters because the commission arranges student exchanges and public programming that require host families, local partners and logistical planning. Members flagged an immediate need for homestay families for a group scheduled Feb. 6–11 and described student programming as education‑focused rather than purely touristic.

Commission members and staff outlined several specific ideas. A staff member said the group could work with the public library and local arts facilities, naming the Geneva Fine Arts Center and the Dunedin Fine Arts Center, to host demonstrations and culinary events. The staff member added that “It is a, education focused visit.”

Participants described a potential sustainability partnership after a recent meeting with the honorary consul general of France, who introduced the commission to a local chocolatier that also runs a sustainable garden and community center. Commission members suggested partnering with Sheridan Boyle, the commission’s sustainability coordinator, to offer workshops on sustainable gardening that would draw on Nagano’s tradition of island irrigated gardens and local French culinary traditions cited by members.

On student exchanges, the commission reviewed a report on a Nagano high‑school visit in December 2019. A staff member said the visit was “well received” but that the commission “had some difficulty finding homestays as we usually do.” The commission reported 31 applications for the young ambassadors program and said interviews to select chaperones and participants were scheduled for the following day.

Members proposed rotating which grade level travels each year so high school and middle school students could alternate travel years and maintain continuity of exchanges. One member suggested exploring mini internships hosted by French companies for students who could practice French while working; another suggested inviting local world‑language teachers and community members to presentations about Nagano and France.

The commission’s director provided a routine director’s report listing recent and upcoming events — the Festival of Trees, a bonenkai (year‑end gathering), a membership social, and planning for a moon‑viewing event held in September. Staff said they are arranging an appraisal of artifacts so items can be moved to the Water Historical Society for insurance purposes. A planned donation to Nagano following a typhoon had fallen to the “back burner,” staff said; commissioners agreed to proceed with the donation unless further direction was received from the partner city.

On organizational business, a board member nominated Michael to continue as an officer for another year and a second nomination confirmed Pam as vice chair. The motion carried by voice vote; no roll‑call tally was recorded.

Next steps recorded during the meeting: staff will prepare a more detailed program proposal (including venues and partner contacts) for the commission to review at the next meeting; staff will continue the artifact appraisal; and the commission is actively recruiting middle‑school homestay families for the February visit.

Items discussed but not decided included the formal repeal process the commission has initiated for past relationships with Calamaria, Greece, and Wiyang at New South Wales, Australia; staff said they had received no formal responses from those partner cities.