News Briefs Week of 10/19/20

By: 
Staff writer

Toledo Sister
Cities celebrates
30th Anniversary
Hilde Daugherty, president of the Toledo-Szeged Committee with Toledo Sister Cities International, announced that despite challenges associated with the Covid-19 virus, the cities of Toledo and Szeged, Hungary still managed to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their Sister Cities agreement with events in both cities.
The agreement between the two cities was fostered by the Rev. Martin Hernady, of St. Stephen’s Church, and Ann Galloway, then vice-president of Sister Cities International.
The sister city agreement was signed in October 1990. The founding members included Galloway and Judy Balogh. Peter Ujvagi, a state representative at the time, was instrumental in strengthening the relationship by leading trade delegations to Szeged and welcoming Hungarian leaders in Toledo.
The two cities had planned on celebrating the milestone anniversary starting last May, but the COVID-19 outbreak made that impossible. A Toledo delegation was scheduled to travel to Hungary last May, but that trip was canceled due to travel restrictions. The delegation hopes to travel to Hungary in May 2021.
As a result, the City of Toledo honored the agreement during the week of Oct. 4-10 with a proclamation from Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz and a gift of Toledo-made glass art for Dr. Laszio Botka, mayor of Szeged. A reception for 150 guests was scheduled for Oct. 10 at The Toledo Club, but that too had to be cancelled due to the pandemic.
A small reception was scheduled for Oct. 12 at the Szeged City Hall as part of the celebration, however no one from Toledo was able to attend due to travel restrictions.
In a letter to Dr. Botka, Mayor Kapszukiewicz stated, “Toledo and Szeged have always enjoyed a strong relationship, and many Toledoans embrace their Hungarian heritage. Our exchange of people, programs, and ideas has greatly benefited Toledo and I look forward to many more years of this amazing partnership that has culturally enriched our residents.”
The Toledo-Szeged agreement started with the mission to preserve and promote the Hungarian heritage in Toledo. It evolved to support educational exchanges on both the secondary and university levels with the University of Toledo and Lourdes University. Other programs included a Christmas gift project that provided gifts to orphans and underprivileged families, participation in the Birmingham Festival, and cultural programs such as concerts, galas, craft demonstrations and lectures by visiting dignitaries.
In addition, there have been economic exchanges between the two cities. Since 1999, the dual relationships with Szeged and Csongrad County have received additional support from the Great Lakes Consortium for International Training and Development.
“The interchange of people, programs, and ideas has produced amazing results and culturally enriched our future leaders,” Mayor Kapszukiewicz wrote in his proclamation.
The agreement, as well as other Toledo Sister Cities International partnerships, may take on a new role in response to the COVID-19 virus.
“The challenges we faced in 2020 have greatly changed the role our sister city agreements play going forward,” said Jim Hartung, president, Toledo Sister Cities International. “As we saw earlier this year, we must stand ready to help each of our sister cities as partners in this fight. That’s one of the reasons we are here – to unite.”
For more information on Toledo Szeged Sister City Committee, contact Daugherty at 419-936-8429 or email toledoszeged@bex.net.
To make a donation toward the 30th Anniversary Celebration, mail checks payable to Toledo Szeged Committee, P.O. Box 404, Perrysburg, OH 43552.
More info on Toledo Sister Cities International is available at ToledoSisterCities.org.
District Qualifies for Auditor of State Award with Distinction

Award with Distinction
The Northwestern Water and Sewer District announced that after its recent financial audit by Auditor of State Keith Faber’s office, good record-keeping has qualified The District for the Auditor of State Award with Distinction.
On Oct. 8, the Northwest Regional Liaison to the Auditor of State, Lori Brodie, presented the award during The District’s Board of Trustees meeting via teleconference. The Auditor of State is responsible for auditing more than 5,900 state and local government agencies.
The official press release announcement and a full copy of the report is available at: http://ohioauditor.gov/news/pressreleases/Details/5563.

Childhood vaccines
In Ohio and across the country, there has been a decrease in vaccinations administered to protect against diseases like measles, chickenpox, whooping cough, and polio. At a press conference last week, Gov. Mike DeWine encouraged parents not to delay their children's well-visit vaccinations.
"While we do not have a vaccine yet for COVID-19, we can prevent more than a dozen other diseases from harming our children and our communities," said DeWine. "It is critical that Ohioans and providers remain vigilant about keeping children up to date on these vaccines."
In the coming days, the Ohio Department of Medicaid will launch several initiatives to encourage childhood immunizations among its members. These efforts will be aimed at increasing safe, convenient access to vaccinations by providing mobile vaccination clinics and reducing administrative barriers for providers.
DeWine also unveiled a new public service announcement that stresses the importance of childhood vaccines.

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