2012-09-24 Sister City Commission MinutesEdmonds Sister City Commission
Meeting Date: September 24, 2012 — Meeting Minutes
Pos. 1 Michelle Van Tassell
Pos. 4 Marlene Friend
Pos. 7 lyoko Okano
Pos. 10 Beth Fuhriman
Pos. 2 OPEN
Pos. 5 Kay Vreeland
Pos. 8 Kody McConnell
Pos. 11 Jill Van Berkom
Commissioners not in Attendance: McConnell, Ikeda, Friend
Staff. None
Call to order: 7:07pm
Pos. 3 Yoshikata Inoue
Pos. 6 Rita Bailey Ikeda
Pos. 9 Joseph Fletcher
Pos. 12 OPEN
Guest Presentation: Edmonds artist, Mona Fairbanks, and My Edmonds News reporter, Janette
Turner, described their idea centering on a lantern walk which is to occur during the month of August in
downtown Edmonds. A handout was given to each Commissioner further describing the event. The
handout is included in the attached pages.
Paul Anderson, who seeks a position as a Commissioner, introduced himself and attended the meeting.
Minutes: The August meeting minutes were sent out electronically and reviewed during an email
discussion. A move was made to accept the minutes for the August meeting. This was seconded and
passed by the body.
Treasurer's report: Kody submitted a treasurer's report noting a total balance of $8,761.26. A
motion was made to accept the treasurer's report as written. The motion was seconded and carried by
the body.
Correspondence: Our group held a Skype conference which was attended by Yoshi, Carrie, and lyoko.
Okamoto-san, Nagasaki-san and Sakakibara-san attended the meeting on the Hekinan side. We
expressed our concern about the following topics:
• age of the Hekinan student delegation
• Edmonds may not have student demand to send students to Hekinan every year
• Emphasis on the 25-year anniversary
Some discussion was offered on these topics with the result being that another Skype conference is
required to come to some decision regarding the exchange program for next year. It was observed that
the use of a live teleconference is preferred (in some cases) over the somewhat ambiguous
communication that takes place during email.
Old business:
Hekinan Delegation Reflection: Rita presented an evaluation form where several questions were posed
to the student volunteers. The 9 questions were sent to all students — responses were returned by 3
students. Transportation was perhaps the most noted issue. A copy of this report is attached to the
minutes.
Edmonds Delegation Report: Jill was able to offer her remarks on the Edmonds student delegation trip
as she was not able to attend the previous meeting. A notable experience was the preparation of the
Pula, Croatia delegation in regard to gift giving. In addition, the Pula delegation was well -prepared for
the sayonara party with a lengthy presentation including professionally prepared tourism brochures.
Several members of the group remarked on our limitations and it was noted that there were several
instances where the Edmonds chaperone could have been better informed on the requirements and/or
expectations.
Saturday Market Booth: The booth will be in place this weekend. An additional volunteer is needed.
Beth and Joseph are checking on their availability. The previous booth session found some community
interest in the program and a previously held 'Cultural Night.'
Adult Delegation: Brainstorming session is to be held this Friday afternoon (9/28) at 3pm with the
Mayor. The group will report the outcome of this session at the next meeting.
Lantern Walk: The Commission's response to the presentation was positive. With additional thought
and planning, the event could be a great community activity. Kay will serve as the liaison to this group.
Hazel Miller Foundation Update: Michelle reported a positive response from the Hazel Miller
foundation indicating a willingness to support the efforts to recognize the 25th-year anniversary of the
Sister City relationship. Michelle will continue to communicate with the organization. It was also
reported that Carl Zapora with the Verdant Health organization may be seeking grant applications. The
targeted recipients will be in the health and healthcare area.
Student Delegation 2013: Beth shared a letter and the responses from a couple of students from the
Edmonds delegation. Some of the content received will be published in the School District eNewsletter.
The response document is attached to these minutes.
Edmonds Floretum Garden Club: Joseph will draft additional language in the response letter indicating
that Floretum should contact Hekinan directly. It was also mentioned that there is a former Chaperone
who may have experience with Japanese gardens that is valuable to Floretum.
Olympic Ballet: The request from the ballet school has not yet been discussed with our Hekinan
counterparts. No mention was made of a plan to do so.
New Business:
City Council Student Representatives: the Edmonds City Council has passed a City Ordinance to appoint
a student representative to each Board and Commission. It may be necessary for our Commission to
modify our Commissioner application toward this program. Jill will lead this effort with support from
Joseph and Beth.
Hekinan Gift: For the 25t"-year anniversary, Michelle suggested a muralist, Andy Eccleshall, whose art
might be a suitable gift. His work can be found at www.muralworks.com
Tabled: <placeholder>
Next Meeting: October 22nd — 7:OOpm
Adjournment: 9:02pm