At an exciting official ceremony held last week at the Poznan City Hall in Poland, the Raanana Municipality signed a twin city treaty with Poznan.  Signing in Mayor Nahum Hofree’s name were Deputy Mayor Aryeh Friedman and City Council Member Sima Perry (the chair of the twin cities committee) and Poznan Mayor, Richard Grobelny signed for Poznan.  Also in attendance was Raanana City Councilmember, Shai Even, who was in Poland at the time.

At the ceremony was an impressive representation from Poland, including senior officials from the Poznan local authority, city council members, the regional governor of Wielkopolska, Israel’s Deputy Ambassador to Poland, Warsaw’s Chief Rabbi and the leader of the Poznan Jewish Community.   

Poznan joins the six other twin cities with which the Raanana Municipality has signed a twin city treaty:  Opsterland, Holland; Bramsche, Germany; Boulogne Billancourt, France; Verona, Italy; Tainan, Taiwan and Atlanta, U.S.  Raanana has also signed a friendship treaty with Goslar, Germany.

The municipal delegation led by the deputy mayor included two additional municipal representatives, city council woman Sima Perry and International Relations Coordinator Mrs. Ronit Shoham, who is responsible for relations with the twin cities.  The delegation spent three days in Poznan, during which time it visited a number of institutions and sites, including a music academy, the Adam Mickiewicza University, the chamber of commerce and industry and the main cultural center.  During their stay, Poznan Jewish community leader, Ms. Alicia Kobus escorted the delegation, joining them on their tour of the city’s Jewish sites.

In the lobby of the City Hall, there was an exhibition in honor of the Raanana delegation that included photographs of the different sites in Raanana as well as historical photographs of the Poznan Jewish synagogue.

The city of Poznan is Poland’s fifth largest city and the capital of Wielkopolska.  Its population is over a half of a million residents.  The city is Poland’s fourth largest industrial center and is situated between Berlin and Warsaw, three hours drive from each city.

Poznan has 12 twin cities from around the world and is known for its wealth of cultural institutions:  choirs, orchestras, theater, ballet and its many sports centers.  Poznan is scheduled to host the FIFA 2012 games.
The relationship between Poznan and Raanana began in 2008, when the mayor of Poznan came to Israel as part of a delegation of mayors from around the world in honor of Israel’s 60 years of independence.  The mayor of Poznan was a member of the Polish delegation organized by the Israel-Poland Friendship Association and led by the governor of the district.

The director of the Raanana Symphonette, Orit Fogel, introduced the delegation members to Mayor Nahum Hofree.  A year later the Raanana Symphonette traveled to the Wielkopolska district courtesy of the district governor and mayor of Poznan, making a very good name for itself there.

Raanana and Poznan are symbols of two cities that are committed to the development and promotion of sustainability and environmental protection.  Poznan has hosted the UN conference in 2008, which dealt with the issue of the impact of weather changes on the planet.  Mayor Nahum Hofree participated in the recent international conference on climate, held in Copenhagen, Denmark.

City Council Member, Sima Perry, Chairwoman of the Twin Cities Committee:  “It was an enriching educational experience for the entire delegation.  We returned home with an enormous feeling of pride due to the friendliness and solidarity displayed by the city and the country as a whole.  The meetings in the different fields acted as a basis for the beginnings of fruitful cooperation between us.”

Mayor Nahum Hofree: “The city of Raanana is happy to expand its circle of partners overseas and to add new cities in order to establish reciprocal relations in the fields of industry, sustainability, education and art and to expand the friendly ties between the Poznan Jewish community and Raanana residents.”

In the photo:  Poznan Mayor, Deputy Mayor Aryeh Friedman and City Council Woman Sima Perry at the signing ceremony at the Poznan City Hall in Poland.