Clare town celebrates twinned towns in Germany and US

CLARE town celebrates relationships with German and United States twin towns, as the anniversaries of 10 and 35 years come up.

An official welcome reception was held at Áras Contae an Chláir in Ennis to celebrate key landmark anniversaries of twinning relationships between Ennis and Langenfeld in Germany and the US city of Phoenix.

Hosted by Mayor of Ennis Municipal District, Cllr Pat Daly, and Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council, Cllr Joe Cooney, the event was attended by local government and community representatives from Langenfeld and Phoenix who have travelled to Ireland to mark the 10th and 35th anniversaries respectively of their links with the Clare county town.

Since the formation of the twinning relationship between Ennis and the Arizona State Capital of Phoenix in 1988, civic and community leaders from both sides of the Atlantic have visited each other on exchanges and have developed strong ties and personal friendships, while hundreds of youths have participated in foreign exchanges over the years.

The idea of a twinning arrangement between Langenfeld, located in North-Rhine-Westphalia between Düsseldorf and Cologne in the district of Mettmann, and Ennis was first identified by the Irish Embassy in Berlin in 2009. Following numerous student and sports exchanges, the relationship was formalised in 2013 with the signing of a twinning charter.

Cllr Joe Cooney, Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council, described the strength of the relationships that has developed between Langenfeld, Phoenix and Ennis over the past 10- and 35-year periods as “remarkable”.

“Twinning relationships mean more than just a partnership agreement that has been signed between local authorities. They are about peoples from different sides of the world coming together in the spirit of friendship, cooperation, shared endeavour, and peace,” said Cllr Cooney.

Mayor of Ennis Municipal District, Cllr Pat Daly said the longstanding partnerships have helped to bridge geographical and cultural divides and they have created lasting friendships between the people of the sister locations.

“The Youth Ambassador Programme has particularly helped to consolidate and grow the excellent relationship that now exists. It is very important that we celebrate these real and enduring associations.”

Mayor Daly said it was a great honour for the people of Ennis to be twinned with Langenfeld and Phoenix.

A return visit to Langenfeld by a delegation from Ennis will take place later this month following an invitation issued by the chairman of the executive council (Bürgermeister) of Langenfeld, Frank Schneider.