November 2009 Archives

Sebastopol builds cultural ties through annual exchanges with sister cities in Japan, Ukraine

By Bleys W. Rose
The Press Democrat

SEBASTOPOL -- Signs at entrances to this tiny west county community proclaim sister city relationships with cities in Japan and the Ukraine, but only a few people, such as Leaf Roberts and Val Churma, understand what it takes to keep renewing two decades of cultural exchanges.

Through the nonprofit group Sebastopol World Friends, the town has had a sister-city relationship with Yamauchi, Japan, since 1985 and with Chyhyryn, Ukraine, since 1992. Both were undertaken at the behest of the city council, which sought to establish cultural links with cities of similar size.

"The model is to work toward world peace, one friend at a time," said Churma, who serves as chair of the group this year. "When you can't join the Peace Corps or give a lot of money, you can do things to promote friendship among young people when they are so impressionable."
Information on the nonprofit's programs can be found at www.sebastopolwf.org 

2009 Santa Rosa Merit Awards to honor contributions of those who 'make Santa Rosa a better place to live'

By MIKE McCOY
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

They are among Santa Rosa's "unsung," people whose contributions to the city and its citizens often go unheralded.

But on Monday, 21 individuals, nonprofit groups and businesses will be awarded Merit Awards for their contributions and volunteer efforts that "make Santa Rosa a better place to live," said Sally Mullen, chairwoman of the 2009 Merit Award Committee that chose this year's recipients from 38 nominations.

"It's to give honor to those who are hardly ever talked about," said Mullen, noting most honorees go about enriching people's lives, neighborhoods and opportunities with little fanfare.

Since the awards program began in 1978, more than 700 have been given out "partly to
encourage volunteerism and to show there are people among us who are unsung," she said.

Look Good . . . Feel Better program provides wigs, scarves, makeup and skin care tips for women fighting cancer.

BY MARY CALLAHAN
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

By the time Healdsburg resident Tammy Montenegro had lost both breasts and her blond hair to cancer treatment last year, she was starting to feel a little bit more like an "it" than a "she."

"All the outward signs of femininity were going to be gone, and that's really upsetting," she says, now cancer-free, her hair and body restored.