Richmond Shimada Friendship Commission
Presentation to Richmond City Council
October 22nd, 2024
1961 World Conference of Mayors, Washington DC
Richmond mayor Daniel “Hap” Bradley and Shimada mayor Masaya Mori met at the 1961 conference and agreed to pursue a Sister City exchange, the first for both cities.
The Richmond City Council established the Richmond Shimada Friendship Commission on March 12th, 1962. 1963 First Richmond Delegation Visits Shimada
Ten Richmond delegates visited Shimada, starting a 60-plus-year tradition of in-person exchanges that continues to this day.
2024 Shimada Friendship Ambassadors
From March 20th – 28th, RSFC volunteers hosted a delegation of ten Friendship Ambassadors from Shimada.
2024 Shimada Friendship Ambassadors
The Ambassadors visited Richmond museums, landmarks, and businesses as well as WCCUSD schools, and stayed with local host families.
2024 Richmond Friendship Ambassadors
This summer RSFC sent our first post-pandemic delegation of five Richmond Friendship Ambassadors to Shimada, from June 19th – July 11th.
2024 Richmond Friendship Ambassadors
The Ambassadors stayed with host families, met Mayor Someya, visited local schools, businesses and cultural sites, and tried playing traditional instruments. They participated in local traditions and practiced conversational English with all ages.
Preparations for our 2025 Friendship Ambassador exchange programs are already underway.
For 2025, we have set a goal to raise funds to reduce the cost of airfare for the outbound Richmond Friendship Ambassadors. We don’t want the high cost of airfare to discourage students from applying to represent Richmond in Shimada.
Additionally, we have begun planning for the 65th anniversary of the Sister City relationship in 2026. We intend to invite an adult delegation from Shimada to visit Richmond; as well as prepare commemorative gifts.
Why support a Sister City relationship?
Sister City relationships are an essential part of a commitment to global peace and friendship. Despite improving communication technologies and social media, it is still a difficult thing to make real connections and understanding across cultures. Sister City relationships offer the opportunity to create lifelong friendships with people from another culture. In-person exchanges are an invaluable tool for bridging cultural differences and creating lifelong friendships.
Richmond has one of the oldest active US-Japan Sister City relationships in the country, thanks to the dedication and participation of many volunteers and supporters – host families, chaperones,