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DURHAM -- For those who believe Durham is a one-of-a-kind, it may come as a shock to find that she is not alone in the world.
In fact, the Bull City has not one, but four, sister cities scattered across the globe.
And it’s there’s been a small family reunion taking place.
Four delegates from Durham’s sister city in Russia, Kostroma, came to Durham earlier this week to learn more about accountability in local government, which was the theme of this year’s visit.
“We learn something from you,” said Andrey Vladimirovich Makhin, one of the delegates, at a Downtown Durham Rotary Club lunch.
“If you ask our host families, we get numerous calls from our families, who are happy we are in America.”
Delegates from Kostroma were selected based on their connections and background with local government.
The mayor of Kostroma was originally slated to come on the exchange as well, but had to cancel due to the upcoming elections in Russia.
The delegate’s visit was fully funded by the Open World Program, a congressional initiative to foster connections between Eurasia and the United States.
Anne Berkley, who is co-chairwoman of the Kostroma Committee of the Sister Cities of Durham program, said that the program has led to several interactions between the two cities, including exchanges of art and photography exhibits and English book donation drives.
“The hope is that they’ll take ideas from here and implement them there,” she said.
The delegates’ visit included meeting scholars at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Government and the Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy, and attending meetings with local city and county representatives.
They toured of historic sites and major attractions in Durham – and were planning, if possible, to shop.
“There’s not much time – but they love to shop,” said Berkley.
The program also aims to further the personal connections between citizens of the two countries by arranging homestays for the Russian participants with local Durham residents.
Jodee Nimerichter, a Rotary Club member and American Dance Festival director, hosted Aleksandr Nikolayevich Yegorov, a deputy of the Kostroma city council. She said it was an amazing experience for her family.
“He’s been wonderful because he’s so open,” she said.
“They watched the Super Bowl, they went to rehearsals – he’s just been immersing.”
The Durham Rotary Club has also reached out to the delegates in hopes of starting a rotary club in Kostroma.
B.C. Dash, a member of the Rotary Club, said, “Our interest is, we’re prepared to help them establish a club. If it happens, we can create all kinds of cooperation.”
The Sister Cities of Durham program is a volunteer-based program that seeks to build long-term relationships with people from other countries.
Durham’s sister cities currently also include Durham, England; Arusha, Tanzania; and Toyama, Japan.
Dot Borden, who helped start the program in the late ’80s, said Durham was lucky to have sister cities around the world, and that the organization is courting two more.
“We’ve learned a lot about other cultures just by being courteous, curious – by being ourselves,” said Borden.
