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Pleasant Hill & Merzifon – Sister Cities
Friends of Merzifon is a Sister City Organization that
brings together the people of two cities: Pleasant Hill, California, USA,
and Merzifon, Amasya, Turkey.
As a secular democracy with a Moslem majority, Turkey is the bridge between
Asia and Europe, between the East and the West. As such, it shares one
of the goals of Sister Cities International.
Board Votes to End Sister City Relationship |
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A Sad But Proud Farewell. . .
Friends of Merzifon has been in existence
for eight years. The first six of those years was a period of immense
activity and achievement. In the words of Board member Peggy Blake,
FoM's Secretary:
"Friends of Merzifon sponsored a number of educational
and cultural exchanges with our sister city in Turkey. We also delivered,
in cooperation with Pleasant Hill Rotary and with a non-profit organization
in Turkey, two containers of 280 wheelchairs each. The handicapped
and disabled of Merzifon received the first shipment. The second
shipment, the funds for which were raised by FoM President Earl
Rupp, went to the American Hospital in Gaziantep, which serves southeastern
Turkey.
In addition to hosting eight distinguished citizens of Merzifon
in Pleasant Hill, FoM brought over four students and two teachers
for a two-week joint program with College Park High School. Two
groups of Pleasant Hill citizens not only visited Merzifon but also
toured many beautiful and historic sites in Turkey. ." . In
2004, a very successful English as a Second Language summer school
program involving twelve American teachers was conducted in Merzifon
for 72 students. In 2005, fifteen teachers, including two teachers-in-training
from Denmark, traveled together in Turkey for seven weeks, learning
about the country and connecting with its people."
And that is not all! Among other projects,
FoM sent hundreds of pounds of books to Merzifon's high schools
and public library. We initiated pen-pal exchanges between Merzifon
and Pleasant Hill students. We participated in numerous Chamber
of Commerce Business Faires and Pleasant Hill Multi-cultural Celebrations
by setting up information booths. With our banner flying high, we
marched in many Fourth of July parades. A cane, hand-crafted by
a Merzifon woodcarving artist, was presented to President George
Bush. Click to continue
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"The Sister Cities program was officially launched
in 1956 with President Eisenhower's People-to-People diplomacy initiative."
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