This past week, Gilroy’s Sister City in Takko-Machi, Japan, sent a group of five senior high school students to spend a week in Garlic Capital. The group was hosted by local families who very generously opened their homes to the visitors and provided them not only with gracious hospitality, but a great experience of American life and entertainment.
The group of five Takko-Machi students included Shiori Sakuragawa, Yuki Hizawa, Mao Yamaichi, Mitsunori Koshimeguri and Yohsuke Hayashi. They were accompanied by chaperones Masato Sakurai, a math teacher at Takko High School, Yasuyo Takadate, of the Takko Garlic International Friendship Association, and Mekala Sheedy, Coordinator of International Relations.
The group arrived the evening of Jan. 4, 2013, was introduced to their host families and kicked off a week of local tours and visits to Gilroy and Christopher High Schools. They were able to visit local businesses and the outlets for some shopping (always a high point of their trip), and tour the downtown area.
On Monday, the Takko group toured Christopher Ranch, where they saw how important garlic is to Gilroy. They were also given tours of police and fire stations as well as city hall, where they were greeted by Mayor Don Gage and officially welcomed to Gilroy. The following week included visits to Stanford University and Gavilan Community College on Wednesday, and on their last night in Gilroy the group enjoyed a Sayonara party in their honor by Gilroy Sister Cities Association; during which the visiting Takko students demonstrated Japanese calligraphy and gave speeches to their host families, telling of what they especially enjoyed about their stay in Gilroy.
Each year, the town of Takko-Machi sends two groups of students to Gilroy for week-long stays – a junior high school group in the fall and senior high school students in early January. The visits are made possible only by the generosity of the many Gilroy host families.
The Gilroy Sister Cities Association would especially like to thank the following for their kindness and generosity:
• Eric and Marah Kuwada, host family
• Matt and Sonya Morley, host family
• Frank and Cheryl Lauber, host family
• John & Karen McCarry, host family
• Adam and Erin Gemar, host family
• Gretchen and Kermit Yoder-Schrock, host family
• Christopher Ranch, Gilroy Police and fire departments, City Public Information Officer Joe Kline and Mayor Don Gage.
