Sedona Sister Cities Association Chairman Chuck Marr said he is optimistic that the group will make a recommendation to the Sedona City Council sometime this year that Sedona enter into its first Sister City relationship with Canmore, Alberta, Canada.

“Canmore is working on developing a steering committee; however, the person who is pulling that together has also had some personal issues arise,” Canmore Mayor Sean Krausert said. “Accordingly, the process is moving slowly.” 

However, potential also exists for multiple future Sister City partnerships in Ireland and Poland, Marr said.

“We’ve also had some initial discussions with folks in Blessington, Ireland,” Marr said. “It’s a town of about 5,000 about 20 miles south of Dublin and it’s a quaint Irish town. It has various lakes, it’s in County Wicklow, and that’s where a lot of the films that are filmed in Ireland because of its natural beauty. We’ve had folks talking with members of their city council and county council, but nothing much has happened there since. We’re hoping to have a Zoom call visit once more within the next 30 days.”

“Many Sedonans have traveled to Ireland, now including Mary Byrd,” SSCA wrote in its January newsletter. “She has familial ties to Wicklow County, Ireland and is planning to visit Blessington during her upcoming Irish trip.” 

Family ties also brought about SSCA’s newest “twining” opportunity with Jasło, Poland, which has also expressed interest in Sedona. The Polish option originated with SSCA member Edyta Wieczorek, a native of Jasło and member of the Arizona Polish-American Society. SSCA’s board will discuss it on Saturday, Jan. 27.

“Fresh from a two-week visit to Jasło, Wieczorek reports positive developments,” SSCA wrote in its January newsletter. “The council members in Jasło are actively exploring the establishment of a Sister City connection with Sedona and are in the process of forming a local support group.”

“It is in southern Poland, and 30 miles from the Ukrainian border,” Marr said. “Its claim to fame is it’s a winemaking area, and it has 16 different wineries, which might be a nice match for this area.”

“I was 18 when I left Poland,” Wieczorek said. “So all my family is from there. Recently I [reconnected] with the city. … Since I’ve been in the United States, I love Sedona. They have very similar things, especially with wine … I got the idea because when I left and visited in August, they have the wine festival and Sedona has the wine festival. I was like, it would be so wonderful to exchange. Jasło is an attractive city but it’s more [manufacturing], it’s not very touristy, so they can help each other with growing in a different direction.”

Three members of the Jasło City Council also visited Sedona on Nov. 14 during a trip to Phoenix as part of the annual Polish-American Ball.

“Jasło has a [long] history because this is a town which started in the 12th century,” Wieczorek said. “So we have a little bit [of] a different history and heritage. Jasło was destroyed 97% during the Second [World] War, so there was nothing left and they rebuilt … so people who live there [are] diverse, strong and they’re very lovely. If you go visit, you will fall in love right away. They are very welcoming and the same thing I [felt] when I arrived at the [SSCA] meeting in Sedona.”

Apart from looking at twining opportunities, SSCA also announced that it is joining Sister Cities International’s Young Artists and Authors Showcase.

“The Young Artists and Authors Showcase is an annual contest that encourages youth worldwide to express the mission of Sister Cities International through original artwork, literature, photography and music,” the Sister Cities International website states. “Submissions are centered around an annual theme and judged based on creativity, composition and theme interpretation.”