CITY OF FRESNO
Office of Mayor Jerry P. Dyer & Council President Mike Karbassi
_________________________________ ________________________________ JERRY P. DYER, Honorable Mayor MIKE KARBASSI, Council President
_________________________________ ________________________________ MIGUEL ARIAS, Council Vice President ANNALISA PEREA, Councilmember District 1
_________________________________ ________________________________ TYLER MAXWELL, Councilmember District 4 BRANDON VANG, Councilmember District 5
_________________________________ ________________________________ NICK RICHARDSON, Councilmember District 6 NELSON ESPARZA, Councilmember District 7
WH EREAS, Markus Lewe is a homegrown son of Münster, Germany, born in 1965. He studied administrative economy, earned a degree in public administration and has been politically active since 1982; and
WH EREAS, in 1999, Mayor Lewe was elected district mayor of the Münster-South-East district and was subsequently re-elected in 2004. After Münster Mayor Berthold Tillmann announced that he would seek reelection in 2009, Lewe ran successfully for mayor of the city, later winning re-election in 2015 and 2020; and
WH EREAS, Fresno and Münster in 1986 created a Sister City partnership. Now, 39 years later, Münster is Fresno’s second-oldest continuing Sister City, with the two locales developing a relationship that has grown stronger over time; and
WH EREAS, during Mayor Lewe’s time as Münster’s mayor, he has been a true friend to Fresno, working to grow the Sister City relationship in the spirit of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who founded the modern program in 1956.
President Eisenhower envisioned partnerships that fostered people-to-people relationships between cities from different nations. Under Mayor Lewe and multiple Fresno mayors, this partnership has been that and more, with idea exchanges and economic development that have benefited both cities; and
WH EREAS, during Mayor Dyer ’s time in office , Fresno and Münster under Mayor Lewe reaffirmed the Sister City relationship and sign ed a Memorandum of Understanding to learn from each other in areas such as affordable housing, energy-efficient public transport hubs, and safe bicycle mobility; and
WH EREAS, as Mayor Lewe ends his time in office and steps away as mayor, we wish him the best in his next endeavor and thank him for his steadfast commitment to our Sister City relationship.
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that we, Mayor Jerry Dyer and Members of the Fresno City Council, do hereby proclaim Thursday, October 30, 2025, to be:
“Markus Lewe Day”
In the City of Fresno.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, we have hereunto set our hands and
affixed the seal of the City of Fresno, California, this 30th day of October 2025.
Honoring Retiring Münster Mayor Markus Lewe