(Editor’s Note: A Version of This Post Also Appeared in the Sonoma-Index Tribune on April 13th, 2023.)
We all have seen the flag display on the Sonoma City Hall – the seven flags of historic association with our town, but did you know that there are seven other flags associated with Sonoma?
Yes, seven more flags! They are the flags of the countries in which Sonoma Sister Cities Association’s seven sister cities are located. With one exception possibly two, you rarely if ever, see them displayed around town. The two exceptions are the Mexican flag, which is frequently seen especially around the time of the Cinco de Mayo celebrations, and the Ukrainian flag which can recently be seen displayed at a number of venues, mainly residences of our local citizens who are showing support for the suffering of those in Sonoma’s sister city in Ukraine.
These seven cities, in the order of their establishment as a Sonoma Sister City, and their countries’ flags, are pictured in this post.
As explained on the SSCA website (sscasonoma.org), the first sister city relationship was between the City of Sonoma and the City of Chambolle-Musigny, France. After the founding of Sonoma’s second sister city, the Sonoma Sister City Association was established by official agreement, signed on September 8, 1986, between the City of Sonoma and Sister Cities International (SCI).
Today, there are seven Sister City Committees all operating under the aegis of SSCA. Each of these committees work with SSCA to advance its mission and that of SCI, which is creating the opportunity for citizen-to-citizen diplomacy.
Through international people-to-people relationships, the mission of SSCA is to promote global peace through mutual respect, understanding, and cooperation – one individual, one community at a time. This mission is advanced through four broad-based goals with SSCA’s global partners to:
- Facilitate cultural and arts exchanges
- Support humanitarian assistance projects
- Offer youth and educational programs
- Stimulate economic and sustainable development
Over the years, Sonoma City Mayors, and other members of the city government as well as Sonoma residents, have been personally involved with delegation visits to Sonoma and some have been on delegation visits abroad. Through its activities, SSCA, with the vision of the City of Sonoma, has been an important factor in the recognition of Sonoma as an international tourism destination.
Robert Demler, Director-at-Large, Sonoma Sister Cities Association
