Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Sister Cities Committee 05/20/2004CITY OF PALM DESERT SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES 3:00 P.M. May 20, 2004 Administrative Conference Room I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Talboys called the meeting to order at 3:00 p.m. 11. ROLL CALL Present: Patricia Bannon Donna Jean Darby Bill Harris John Marman Rose Mary Ortega Gilbert Slagel Peggy Steen Mark Talboys, Chairman Absent: Nancy Jo McIntosh Also Present: Jean Benson, Chairman Sonia Campbell Buford Crites, Mayor Pro Tem Jim Ferguson, Chairman Donna Gomez, Visitor Center Manager Briana Kirkwood, Ex-Officio Member Carlos Ortega, City Manager Ignacio Otero, Division Chief for Riverside County Fire Department O'Jay Vanegas, Ex-Officio Member Lori Wimbish, Recording Secretary III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS None. IV. CONSENT CALENDAR A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING HELD APRIL 15, 2004. Motion to approve the minutes of the Regular Meeting of April 15, 2004, made by Mr. Marman, seconded by Ms. Bannon, carried by a show of hands 7-0-1. Mr. Harris abstained. SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 2 V. NEW BUSINESS A. PRESENTATION BY Sarah Healy, recent visitor to New Zealand. Donna Gomez introduced Sarah Healy. Ms. Healy became interested in the Sister Cities Program through the Aesthetic Education Program. Her family hosted one of Gisborne's teachers last year. When Ms. Healy went to New Zealand she was in turn hosted by a Sister Cities family. Ms. Healy read a statement regarding her experience in New Zealand. Her proposal to the Sister Cities Committee was to support an essay contest in which Palm Desert High School students write a research essay on New Zealand based on questions prepared by the Sister Cities Committee here and in New Zealand. The winner will be chosen on the quality of their research paper. The winning student will receive a free trip to Gisborne for a two -week stay with a host family. Ms. Healy continued giving a narrative of her travels in Gisborne. Her goal through the essay contest was that the students would learn four things; 1) how traveling to another country is a lot easier than one would think; 2) to experience how another multi -cultural country deals with race issues; 3) to get interested in a part of the world which is never covered in the elementary, middle or high school curriculum; and 4) to learn you can eat pumpkin in more than a pie. Mr. Marman asked Ms. Healy what kind of work she was doing while in New Zealand. Ms. Healy said she went to a temporary work agency and her first job was working for an alcohol distribution company, and her second job was with a farming company. Donna Jean Darby asked Ms. Healy what her expectations were from Sister Cities Committee. Ms. Healy was hoping for sponsorship; and planned on doing some fundraising herself. She was going to look into learning how to write Educational Grants. Ms. Healy said the Principal at Palm Desert High School, Mr. Walsh was very supportive of her idea. Ms. Darby mentioned that the City of Palm Desert currently sponsors an essay contest although she was uncertain if they could incorporate this idea within that contest. She also said one of the Tong -range plans that the Sister Cities Committee had discussed is to have a student exchange program. She said there are many concerns to be addressed including insurance and liability, and how could this contest be integrated into the school curriculum. She personally didn't see this happening very soon, however, she certainly thought it was a good seed to plant. Chairperson Talboys said the goal is to give a student the experience most recently had by Ms. Healy. He too thought of the obstacles. If there SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 3 is someway that the Arts, Educational & Cultural Subcommittee can explore this idea and help with its advancement that would be helpful. Ms. Darby did not see any problem exploring this. The reason she asked Ms. Healy to come to the Committee was because the Arts, Educational & Cultural subcommittee would not proceed with anything without feedback from the Committee. Before the subcommittee meets, she wanted to hear from the Committee regarding the feasibility of this proposal. What kinds of problems will the Committee encounter? What are the positives associated with this proposal? Does the Committee believe this can happen? Councilmember Benson asked if there is a group of students at Palm Desert High School that this could fit into. Briana Kirkwood said Mr. Faust has Ethnic Diversity and World History classes. Ms. Gomez said there were agencies that take care of all the details associated with student travel and they will take full responsibility. This may be something to research. The only issue would be that we would not have control over whether they would stay in Gisborne or not. Mr. Harris said the Palm Desert High School French class has a student exchange program to France. This maybe an avenue to find out the information needed to go forth with Ms. Healy's idea. He thought the process could be expedited more quickly than originally thought. Ms. Gomez said she would be happy to begin by communicating with their contacts in Gisborne to see if this is something they are receptive to; and the subcommittee could begin researching the insurance issues as well as look into programs related to student travel. Mr. Harris moved that the Committee continue to research the idea of a student exchange with Gisborne. Motion seconded by Mr. Slagel and carried by a show of hands. Vote 8-0. B. CONSIDERATION of Travel Package Opportunity Drawing. Chairman Talboys gave an overview of the travel package, where the Committee obtained the packets and what the Committee is now offering. Ms. Gomez said the first package is a stay at the Villa Del Sol. Its expiration date is October 31, 2004. There are 100 tickets at a cost of $75.00. The value of the package is a minimum of $3,000.00. She said the tickets are in packets of five and she would like each Committee member to take at least one packet to sell. The drawing will be held one month from today at the next Sister Cities meeting. Chairman Talboys said there are two other hotels, The Presidente and the Bungalows Pacifico. The idea is to get the Villa del Sol underway and SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 4 raffle the other two in a similar fashion. He had a concern that the Committee or staff of The City of Palm Desert could actually purchase these tickets. Ms. Gomez said she did get a response from the City Attorney and that was that the employees of the City of Palm Desert and Committee members were not eligible to purchase the raffle tickets. Sheila Gilligan telephoned the City of Palm Desert's City Attorney Dave Erwin. Ms. Gilligan clarified the information given to Mr. Erwin and he agreed that the raffle tickets could be sold to Committee members and City staff. VI. CONTINUED BUSINESS None. VII. OLD BUSINESS A. UPDATE ON AESTHETIC EDUCATION PROGRAM Donna Jean Darby said the arrival of the teachers from New Zealand is Friday, June 11, 2004 through Saturday, June 19, 2004. She stated that the six teachers are all of Maori decent. She attributed this to O'Jay Vanegas' visit to Gisborne last year and the wonderful friendships he created. Ms. Darby said they want to bring paintings and articles to display for us. Ms. Gomez said that space would be made in the lobby with the existing Sister Cities exhibit. Ms. Darby said they would have to mat the paintings when they arrive, however, if there are remaining paintings that need to be shipped back they can be rolled and put back into tubes for shipping. She added that there was an interest in the Maori art and she would make certain that people know that artwork is on display. Ms. Darby continued giving a summary of the scheduled visit by the Maori people. The wrap-up session is being held at the Avondale Golf Club. Sister Cities will be hosting a buffet dinner beginning at 6:30 p.m. Ms. Darby hoped that all the Committee members would be able to attend this event. Chairperson Talboys asked if there were Mexican teachers attending as well. Ms. Darby said she did not know. Ms. Gomez said she gave information packets to lxtapa Sister Cities Committee during the last visit to Ixtapa. She said she has been in communication with them back and forth. They asked some final questions about four days ago and she is expecting to hear back from them. SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 5 Mr. Ortega said he confirmed with them this morning that they have chosen two teachers. They asked about transportation and Mr. Ortega told them there was a commitment for help with transportation. Chairman Talboys asked if the plans could incorporate the two teachers from Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo. Ms. Gomez said that she and Ms. Darby met with Kajsa at the McCallum last week and she was aware of the possibility of two additional teachers from Ixtapa we just have not confirmed it as yet. Ms. Gomez said they need the information on who is coming so host families could be found. She felt it was easy enough to incorporate them into the program. Mr. Vanegas said he would be available to help in whatever capacity the Committee needs. He also stated a person that is part of their staff is a part-time paid docent for the McCallum Theatre. She will be a part of the program and has offered her home to a Maori. The only thing is that she lives in Wonder Valley, which is quite far. He could not confirm if she was going to be there every day. Chairman Talboys thought it would be a great idea to have the Maori perform on stage at the Summer of Fun event prior to the movie. He felt it would be a good opportunity for the community to experience a different kind of music. Ms. Gomez said last year they asked Deborah Schwartz from the Art Department to give a tour of the public art, which we could do again this year. She said the draft itinerary would be finalized and sent to Committee members via e-mail. She added that she would like the Committee members to be able to participate in all of the activities. B. TRANSPACIFIC GOLF CHALLENGE WRAP-UP Ms. Gomez passed out the Financial Summary for the golf tournament (attached). Chairman Talboys thanked everyone for their support and effort not only with the planning of the golf tournament, but also the day of the tournament as well. He acknowledged and thanked Brian Miller, Food and Beverage Manager at Desert Willow; John Estrella employee of Desert Willow; and Felipe a member of the food and beverage team. He said the tournament was a financial success. C. REPORT AND DISCUSSION OF RECENT IXTAPA-ZIHUATANEJO TRIP Chairman Talboys said the trip further cemented the relationship and friendship between the Sister Cities. It also allowed them to crystallize SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 6 some of the ideas to further develop the relationship with Ixtapa- Zihuatanejo Sister City. He further wanted to acknowledge and record the work done by their hosts the Riviera Beach Resort Hotel, Jesus at Club IntraWest, and the local restaurants that participated in providing lunch. Carlos Garza from Fonatur, Hector Villanueva for his gracious hosting of the final night, Raul Chavez the head of the Sister Cities Committee and his Committee, Dr. Cantu, Amador and Elizabeth Campos and their staff. Certainly the City of lxtapa-Zihuatanejo and the State of Guerrero. He also thanked Council members Jean Benson, Jim Ferguson, and Mayor Pro Tem Buford Crites, City Manager Carlos Ortega, Fire Chief for the Riverside County Fire Department Ignacio Ortero for their participation and contribution. Also, Donna Gomez was instrumental behind and in front of the scenes every step of the way. To everybody else on the trip, he thanked everyone who traveled to Ixtapa- Zihuatanejo for his or her commitment and participation. He said it was a pleasure to travel with everyone. He renewed old friendships and made new acquaintances. Sonia Campbell said she enjoyed her trip to lxtapa very much. She further summarized the experiences she had while she was there regarding the school, the hospital, and the dental office. She said there are people who have what they need and there are those who are barely getting by. Patricia Bannon shared the newspapers that she received from lxtapa. The papers include articles about the Sister Cities Committee's visit and listed the donations given by the Committee. She gave an update on the hospital. Councilmember Ferguson said Sister Cities was the first Committee he served on at the City 10 years ago. When he became a Chairman he and Mayor Pro Tem Crites spoke about working with Mexico because it is our neighbor and such a part of our history. To see this Committee and that idea evolve into the trip to lxtapa was very moving for him. He felt that Sister Cities is a two way street in that we are not only there to help them but to learn from them as well. He saw an impeccably clean city and toured towns that are not on a tourist's map. He visited a town called La Puerta where the maids and restaurant workers live. He visited a school where he was asked to sign their journal and right above his name was Richard Kelly and Carlos Ortega who had been there a month before. He said yes the schools are shacks, but they are incredibly proud people. The children are incredibly clean and impeccably dressed with what they have. There was a wonderful ceremony for them at City Hall and there were hundreds of people there with a marching band. They hung the Palm Desert flag from the flagpole. The firemen told us a story about a Palm Desert resident who was vacationing there had a heart attack and they were able to help him. He said in terms of learning from them their recycling, their environmental sensitivity and even their public works department is as sophisticated as Palm Desert's but they work on SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 7 Sunday. He also said one gets a myopic view of Mexico if you are only familiar with the border towns. The people down there do not have a lot but what they have they are very proud of and they don't expect a handout and that really came through when we were down there. He also thanked the Sister Cities Committee for being proactive in having fundraisers and raffles which give them the autonomy to be more self directing and freestanding. The local people are the backbone of our relationship and now he looks at this Committee and the work that they are doing he sees them as this City's backbone and he thanked them for that. Councilmember Benson added that the people are warm and sincere in everything they do. She gets the feeling that they appreciate it but it is hard for them to believe. She said the schools are very poor and what it would mean to them to just have pencils and pens. She said if the children had a book to take home each night they would think they had a million dollars. If we could start with little programs it would make such a difference in their lives. The recycling program is humbling when you see this one 14 year old boy who after school walks clear across Zihuatanejo to get on his bicycle to go around the neighborhood to pick up bottles and cardboard that they store in an abandoned storefront. She concluded with a story about a young boy, Amador's son, who sent her a note that he was really working on his English because he wanted to come to Palm Desert on a summer program. Ignacio Otero Division Chief for Riverside County Fire Department addressed the Committee. He stated that he has been to Mexico many times but never to Zihuatanejo. They were so grateful for the ambulances and fire truck. A newer fire engine will be going down there with a 55' ladder on top and hopefully they can get that down there in the next few months. He said he spent most of his time in Zihuatanejo with the Fire Department. He took a lot of training manuals with him and learned that they are using the information he took in order to develop a disaster plan. He said they have been invited to retum to Zihuatanejo on August 22nd to celebrate the National Day of Firemen in Mexico. He said about 20 firemen would be going. He appreciated the opportunity to go and felt the people were wonderful and was looking forward to returning to help as much as he can. City Manager Carlos Ortega said everyone covered it all. He has a couple of more days to spend at the border to complete final processes of the donation process, but things are moving along. Mayor Pro Tem Buford Crites felt everyone said it beautifully. He added only that Carlos Ortega and he spent the better part of one day at the Technical University in Petatlan. Primarily the university focuses on the Indians. He said it gives an indigenous population, at the bottom of the economic ladder, an opportunity to end up in the middle class of the nation teaching them skills necessary to be professionals in the SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 8 workforce. He said they give scholarships that average out to about $50+ a month for folks to live on while attending the university. Mr. Ortega and Mayor Pro Tem Crites committed themselves, if not the Committee, to provide a scholarship for one person in the Zihuatanejo area who would otherwise not have a chance. This would make the difference between a past that has been the same for generations and a future that will never be the same. He said they also had an opportunity to visit some folks who have taken upon themselves to be the local version of the "Living Desert." They rescue endangered animals that are captured, i.e. iguanas, parrots, turtles, dogs and cats. He said they must have 200 to 300 animals in a backyard not much larger than a conference room. They hope to have a "campus" and hopefully the Committee might see fit to help in some modest way. This is another wonderful example of people choosing on their own to spend their own money while living in poverty because of it. He thought if the Committee could be part of that process it could be wonderful. He was as enthused with the trip to Zihuatanejo as he always is. The strength of that community and the progress that this Committee has made in strengthening our relationships in New Zealand over the years, the same kinds of things are happening with Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo. All the people in this room have good reason to be very proud of their efforts. Donna Gomez said she was very impressed with the work of DIF, which is the social service agency headed by the mayor's wife. She was impressed by the amazing list of projects they have begun and things that they have accomplished. She felt the Humanitarian Subcommittee might want to take a look at these programs. Ms. Gomez's personal point of view as a Soroptimist was that she would like to support that agency with some of their programs such as school supplies. She said the Committee may not be able to build a school, but they could provide them with basic supplies and clothing. Her hope was to get Soroptimist and other agencies involved (see attached list). Sheila Gilligan addressed the Committee. She stated that as a result of Donna Gomez's hard work, not just with Sister Cities but also through Soroptimist in our community, Ms. Gomez is being honored next week as Woman of Distinction for International Good Will and Understanding. Ms. Gilligan added that there are tickets available if any of the Committee members would like to attend the ceremony, which will be held Wednesday, May 26, 2004, 12:00 p.m., at Desert Falls Country Club. VIII. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. CITY COUNCIL None. SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 9 B. COMMITTEE CHAIR Chairman Talboys would like to revisit the retreat that the Committee attended last year. He asked that everyone review the notes from that retreat and be prepared to discuss those with regard to achievement. What has been completed and what is outstanding. Ms. Gomez has advised him that she is unable to attend the Sister Cities International Conference on July 14-18, 2004. He wanted to make that offer available to other Committee members. He believed Ms. Bannon was slated to go with Ms. Gomez. He said since Ms. Gomez is unavailable to go to the conference, which is not mandatory, should they discuss whether they actually need to be attending this year. Mr. Harris said he did not feel that the decision should be a budget issue. He felt if there were people who want to go and attend they should be given the opportunity to do that. Mr. Ortega said the International Conference is not only for staff people. He said based on his conversation with Raul Chavez he thought they were thinking about going to the conference. Mr. Chavez asked Mr. Ortega for information about the conference. He added that if Ixtapa is going to make the effort to send a couple people than the Committee should do the same. Rose Mary Ortega said she was asked if any Committee member would be attending the U.S./Mexico International Conferences. She told them that was not in the budget and had not been discussed. She told them about the Sister Cities Conference in Texas and gave them the approximate dates. She made a suggestion to them that they consider participating in that conference because it would be very beneficial to them. Motion was made to replace Ms. Gomez with Ms. Ortega to attend the Sister Cities International Conference. Motion carried unanimously by a show of hands. Chairman Talboys asked Mr. Ortega and Councilmember Benson for concrete direction on where the Council or the City may feel the Committee is headed and how soon. Councilmember Benson said she felt Mayor Pro Tem Crites did not favor seeing the Committee become independent from the City. She said the Council could bring that up at the budget session next month and then decide if the Council wants to allocate monies to get it started. Mr. Ortega said one of the reasons people want to see this Committee independent is that there is a feeling that if the Committee were independent there would be more participation from the private sector SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 10 because it would then look like a non-profit organization. What most people do not understand is that the City of Palm Desert is a non-profit agency. When people donate to the Committee the way it is structured now the appearance is that they are giving money to the City. To alleviate Council's concerns the Committee could create a city sponsored non-profit organization. He said they have had those in the past. If an individual or business wanted to donate to Sister Cities solely they can do that. He said the City Attorney could draw up the Articles of Incorporation to make that happen. He gave the example of Desert Willow. Desert Willow is a separate non-profit organization. They have their own Board of Directors, two Council members sit on the Board and he serves as the President of Desert Willow non-profit organization. He suggested that they could do the same thing. The only requirement to be a separate non-profit is that the majority of the Board members cannot be Council members. He felt the concern of Mayor Pro Tem Crites was that if the Committee leaves and then it flounders and then it goes away. He asked the Committee if they wanted him to look into making the Sister Cities Committee non-profit. Chairman Talboys appreciated Mr. Ortega offering to look into this for the Committee. Ms. Ortega offered that the research be given to the Committee to peruse and to consider. Ms. Darby asked what was the need to change what they have been doing for the past four years, which she felt had been going well. Mr. Ortega said there doesn't have to be a change. The concern was raised that when people in the private sector want to donate to a specific cause they may not feel comfortable giving money to an organization that is connected with a city. There is nothing wrong with the way the Committee is currently being ran. The ultimate non-profit is the City. When someone makes a donation to Sister Cities it is tax deductible. It is not necessarily a tax issue it is a perception issue. Mr. Ortega added that if the Committee is happy the way things are being done, that's fine. Ms. Gomez said there are internal issues that do not affect the Committee but they affect her. With the construction of the new Visitor Center her workload will increase and consume more of her time. She said Sister Cities is a full-time job for her now and she will also have a new larger Visitor Center to run. Mr. Marman asked if the City had an opinion on this matter. Councilmember Benson said they haven't really thought much about it. It was more internal with regard to the time it took staff to work on this Committee and should it be turned over to people who don't have other duties. SISTER CITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES MAY 20, 2004 PAGE 11 Chairman Talboys passed out flyers from Ms. Kirkwood for the Palm Desert High School Chamber Singers on May 23, 2004, tickets are $5.00. C. COMMITTEE MEMBERS D. SUBCOMMITTEE MEMBERS Art, Culture & Education Ms. Darby said they are scheduling an Arts Education Committee meeting for 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 25, 2004. The location will be at City Hall and she will confirm that at a later date. She added that there are some decisions to be made; one being the report from Ms. Healy and arrangements for the Aesthetic Education Program. Mr. Vanegas announced an event at the Spa Resort Casino on Friday and Saturday, May 28th and 29th called the Fifth Southern California Indian Telling Story Festival. Free to the public and he passed out the flyers. - Tourism & Economic Development Humanitarian E. STAFF Ms. Gomez read a letter from Toni Lawrence from the UCR Osher Program. She was very appreciative of the Sister Cities Committee for supplying them with information regarding New Zealand. IX. ADJOURNMENT Meeting was adjourned at 5:15 p.m. Lori mbish, Recording Secret