Athlone group to visit US for ‘sister cities’ twinning bid
Two county councillors and four other locals are planning to travel to the US in the coming weeks to get the ball rolling on a 'sister cities' initiative which would see Athlone twinned with Providence, Rhode Island.
The chairperson of Westmeath County Council, Cllr Aengus O'Rourke, will lead the local delegation along with the Mayor of the Athlone Moate Municipal District, Cllr Vinny McCormack.
The two council representatives are due to be joined by four other members of a recently formed Athlone - Providence 'sister cities' committee; John Henson (secretary and liaison officer), Caoimhe O'Connell (cultural officer), Alan Shaw (Athlone Chamber of Commerce) and Donnacha McNamara, representing TUS.
These four committee members would be organising their own travel arrangements for the trip, Cllr O'Rourke said.
Informal links between Athlone and Providence have been in place for a number of years now, as Ballydangan native Patrick Griffin is the President of the St Patrick's Day parade committee in the US city, which is about an hour's drive from Boston.
Cllr O'Rourke previously visited Providence for St Patrick's Day events when he was Mayor of Athlone in 2018, and his successor as Mayor, Cllr Frankie Keena, paid a similar visit the following year.
Last December, the Athlone delegation received a formal invitation to attend the Providence St Patrick's Day Parade Committee's 2023 Grand Marshall's Dinner, Show, and Reception which takes place on Thursday, March 2.
Cllr O'Rourke's visit was formally approved by members of Westmeath County Council at their January meeting, held last week in Mullingar.
Speaking to the Westmeath Independent, the Athlone councillor said meetings during the trip had so far been arranged with Brett Smiley, the recently elected Mayor of Providence, and with senior management at Providence College (University).
There would also be meetings with the President of Providence Chamber of Commerce and with Rhode Island Representative Brian Patrick Kennedy, "who has a huge interest in developing ties with Ireland," Cllr O'Rourke said.
"The 'sister cities' process can take time, so we plan to sign a memorandum of understanding at the Mayor's office to get the process underway," he added.