SOMETIMES  WE  ARE  FILLED WITH  HOPE:  

This weekend, I had the privilege to MC the celebrations to the 70th year of partnership and twinning for the cities of Schwarzenbek, Sierre, Cesenatico, Aubenas and Zelzate.

This celebration was a breath of fresh air in today’s turbulent times. True sharing and friendship, and a genuine interest in and appreciation for each other’s cultures is what I witnessed and took part in.

Young and old from Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland and Belgium celebrated together with song and dance, with shared delicacies from their home county and region, with sporting activities, and with an oath of friendship to each other. The mayors of the respective cities joined hands in symbolic gesture, forming the Chain of the Mayors, die Bürgermeister-Kette, la chêne des Maires, la catena dei sindaci, or de keten van burgemeesters.

This “Verbrüderung” or “Jumelage” grew out of Hans Koch’s ideas and efforts to solidify friendship among Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland and Belgium, by actually allowing citizens, and especially young people, to get to know each other, and to engage in joint activities that centered around sports, singing, dancing, and arts and crafts. It is a partnership that still continues to be actively lived out today!

JUMELAGE OPEN AIR 2025 in SCHWARZENBEK, GERMANY
 Mayor Norbert Lütjens – Schwarzenbek, Germany
 Mayor Jean-Yves Meyer – Aubenas, France
 Mayor Matteo Gozzoli – Cesenatico, Italy
 Mayor Brent Meuleman – Zelzate, Belgium
 Vice-Mayor Eddy Beney – Sierre, Switzerland