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December
2007 - News Update
Signs
identifying the enduring friendship of the cities of Youngstown and
Spišská Nová Ves have been placed in six major
entry points into the City of Youngstown.
Representatives of Youngstown Spišská Nová Ves Sister Cities had met with Youngstown city officials regarding the placement of the signs.
New
Sister City Signs Grace the Entrances to
Youngstown
Brian Petruska, son of Treasurer Bob Petruska, will be filling the
board seat of Dr. John Melnick who recently retired. He will be a great addition to our board
because of his interest in Slovakia and our heritage.
Bernie Demechko, Youngstown Sister Cities Secretary, has been voted as
third vice president of the First Catholic Slovak Ladies Association.
402 delegates attended the 39th quadrennial convention of the
organization held in St. Louis in October 2007. The FCSLA is the
largest Slovak Catholic Fraternal Group in the United States with a
membership of 87,000 and assests over $500 million dollars. The
national board is made up of 13 members, on which Bernie now sits.
At the convention, the body voted to distribute $1,436,000 in
donations. Youngstown Sister Cities was awarded $10,000, after a
request by Bernie Demechko.
This funding came in handy as Youngstown Sister Citites recently crated
and shipped a dental x-ray unit to the city of Lucenic, Slovakia. The
dental equipment was donated by a local Youngstown dentist, and the
cost of transportation was $918.
Senator
George Voinovich Sponsors
Visa Waiver Roundtable
Senator
George Voinovich (R-Ohio) recently hosted a luncheon
and roundtable discussion of the Visa Waiver Program, which would
extend
the ninety-day visa
program to all nations that abide by strict
guidelines who assist the United States in the fight against
terrorism.
The event was held at Saints Cyril and Methodius Slovak
Church in Warren, Ohio. Invited guests included two or three
representatives of various nationalities that have expressed an
interest in extending visits by relatives from European countries.
Bernie Demechko, Secretary, and Steve Bacon, President Emeritus,
Youngstown Sister Cities, represented regional Slovak Americans.
Steve had visited Ambassador Rastislav in Washington the week before
and the Embassy emailed the Youngstown Sister Cities a list showing
Slovakia’s support
of NATO and the United States in world affairs.
The email stated: 100
troops from Slovakia (Engineering Battalion) helped with mine removal
and had just returned home to Slovakia from Iraq….ten Slovak
military instructors are still in Iraq training their
troops…60 Slovak troops are in Afghanistan (Engineering) at
Kabul Airport. When they were recently asked to move to the more
dangerous site of Kandahar, they readily agreed to do so…4
Slovak soldiers have been killed in Iraq…40 Slovak troops
were killed in 2006 when the airplane that was bringing them home to
Slovakia from Kosovo crashed near Kosice. The email further elaborated
that
Slovakia is a non-permanent member of the United Nations and
consistently votes with the United States. One military airport in
Slovakia is used for training purposes but there are no NATO airbases
in Slovakia.
The Visa Waiver Program is an amendment to the Homeland Security Bill
and would include stricter measures such as electronic passports with
biometric information chips for identification, stricter
passenger screening, and the exchange of lists of suspected terrorists
between
countries.
UPDATE (August 2007) A letter was received from Senator George
Voinovich informing Youngstown Sister Cities that on July 26 the full
Senate voted for passage of Senate Bill 4 which included the Visa
Waiver Legislation. This will permit citizens
of 13
deserving countries to visit the United States without severe
restrictions. Slovakia is included in this group. A
thank
you email has been sent to the Senator from the YSC secretary
for
his intensive and extensive work on this bill.
Gigi
Bacon and Bernie Demechko with Senator George Voinovich
Congratulations
Steve Bacon!
On January
4th 2006, Steve Bacon was honored by the Youngstown City Council for
his continued service and leadership through the Sister Cities Program.
That same week, Steve celebrated his 90th birthday at a special
reception with friends, family, dignitaries, and community leaders.
Steve
Bacon (on the right) speaking to Peter Zelenak, First Secretary of the
Slovak Embassy
Outside
of Council Chambers of the City of Youngstown, Steve is holding a
Proclamation acknowledging his service to the community. Standing next
to Steve is his sister Stella Chizmar (starting far left), his wife
Gigi Bacon, his sister and Sister Cities Secretary Bernie Demechko, and
fellow Sister Cities Trustee Ray Novotny (far right).
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