THE efforts of those who led the twinning of the towns of Kinsale and Newport, Rhode Island should be afforded a civic reception, say local representatives.
The twinning arrangement celebrates its 25th anniversary this year; calls have also been made to establish a student exchange programme between schools in both towns.
Cllr Gillian Coughlan (FF) raised the matter at May’s Bandon Kinsale Municipal District meeting, after a recent visit along with a delegation to Newport to mark the anniversary, where reaffirmation ceremonies took place to cement the bond between the two towns.
‘Much of the twinning work was driven by volunteerism, and this twinning is most effective at this level.
It’s important to acknowledge the work by Rick O’Neill and John Twomey as leaders on either side of the Atlantic,’ she said.
Padraig Barrett of Cork County Council said there are huge tourism opportunities for Kinsale as a result of this twinning arrangement.
‘We need to bring in more volunteer clubs into this, and we have an opportunity to capitalise on this special friendship between the two towns,’ he said.
Cllr Coughlan also called on the municipal district to correspond with various schools and colleges in Kinsale to explore the possibility of a student exchange with schools in Newport.
‘The two towns have been twinned for 25 years now and things evolve and change. It’s a twinning with people more than towns, and we could formulate it a bit more,’ she said.
Cllr Coughlan also added that with these difficult economic times and talks of tarriffs this route of ‘soft diplomacy’ between Ireland and the United States is very important.
‘This is an opportunity for young people to be involved in this twinning and explore the links.’
