Sarasota Sister Cities Association to celebrate 10 year anniversary of partnership with Xiamen, China on January 11, 2017
Sarasota, FL – December 24, 2016 – The Sister Cities Association of Sarasota (SCAS) will launch the celebration of the 10 year anniversary of the signing of the Sister City partnership with Xiamen, located in Fujian province of China, at a Luncheon at the Bird Key Yacht Club on January 11, 2017. The Program will be presented by Dr. Carolyn Bloomer, Ringling College Professor Emeritus and Vice President for Sister Cities of Sarasota. Dr. Bloomer will be accompanied by Dr. Hongying Liu, Assistant City Director for Xiamen and the special envoy between Xiamen and Sarasota, Ms. Jian Li.
Sarasota City officials, as well as five; as well four of the original signing delegation including former Mayor Lou Ann Palmer and, Wei Qinghong Wei, the original Assistant City Director, formerly with the Planning Department will also be attending this important occasion. Other guests will include officials and friends from the US-China Peoples Friendship Association (USPCFA-Sarasota); the Gulf Coast Chinese American Association (GCAA); and the Asian Women’s Club of Lakewood Ranch.
History ties our city of Sarasota and Xiamen to the first American united resistance to British rule and the growth of the American Revolution at the “Boston Tea Party.” Guests at this auspicious event will be served Tie Guanyin tea from Xiamen, China. The same tea from Fujian province that was dumped into the Boston Harbor from British tea ships in 1773.
Sister Cities was created at President Eisenhower’s 1956 White House conference on “citizen diplomacy,” which envisioned an organization that could be the hub of peace and prosperity by creating bonds between people from different cities around the world to build partnerships that would lessen the chance of new conflicts by renewing and strengthening important global relationships.
SCAS promotes citizen diplomacy based on cultural, educational, information and trade exchanges. Sister City exchanges also promote economic partnerships as well as humanitarian assistance thereby creating lifelong friendships that provide prosperity and peace between sister cities.
The city of Sarasota is partners with eight other cities around the world to foster global citizenship. They are: Dunfermline, Scotland; Hamilton, Canada; Mérida, Mexico; Perpignan, France; Rapperswill-Jona, Switzerland; Tel Mond, Israel; Treviso Province, Italy; Vladimir, Russia; and Xiamen, China. Rapperswill-Jona in Switzerland will soon be added as a Sarasota Sister City.
For more information on Sarasota Sister Cities and to sign up for this Luncheon, please visit – sarasotasistercities.com