Formulating our future with foreign friends.
We were delighted to welcome members from the Thiers and Schrobenhausen
Twinning Committees to our town.
The German party, consisting of President Hartmut Siegl, Secretary Karola
Gruschwitz and Committee Member Helmut Eikam, arrived on Friday. They had
an enjoyable day on Saturday with their hosts in Bridgnorth and visited
Wightwick Manor.
The French party arrived on Saturday evening, after a long day of travel
disruptions. What should have been a brief changeover in Charles de Gaulle
airport turned into a five hour wait as high winds delayed their first flight.
Despite the long day, they arrived in good spirits. Isabelle Furegon (Secretary)
and René Chalencon (Chair) have visited us on many occasions, but for
Monsieur Maire, Stéphane Rodier (Mayor of Thiers) this was his first visit to
Bridgnorth.
After a grey and wet couple of days, Sunday morning brought sunshine, blue
skies, and a cheerful start to the day of the International Planning Meeting. The
aim of this meeting is for committees to discuss the latest trips and events (in
this case the Summer 2023 visit to Schrobenhausen) and to put forward ideas
and events for the future.
The feedback from the Schrobenhausen trip was positive, with members saying
it allowed them to better understand the history of the local area, and that the
festival was very enjoyable. Furthermore, the football match between the
Bridgnorth Spartans and the local Schrobenhausen team was a wonderful way
for the young people of both towns to make connections. The match ended in a
1-1 draw and the Spartans look forward to playing the German team again in
2024.
Looking to the future, the French put forward their ideas for next Summer's visit
to Thiers, which coincides with the Pamparina Festival, a free three-day event in
the historical town centre which celebrates local, national and international
music as well as local culture. It sounds as if they have some wonderful ideas for
us, and plans will be ironed out closer to the time.
Importantly, we considered how we could keep the Twinning spirit alive and
relevant to younger generations. We have made great progress with football
links, and we talked about furthering sporting friendships through rugby too.
We discussed how the Ville Haute en Couleurs banners are a hit with local pupils
(see previous newsletter) and the Bridgnorth committee enthusiastically put
forward ideas of how we can establish connections through schools and
language workshops. Watch this space!
To conclude, it was a productive weekend in which the three towns fortified our
friendship. We look forward to next year and all of the exciting Twinning
opportunities to come.
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