Achill and Cleveland celebrates 'gold standard' twinning agreement

The twinning agreement between Mayo County Council, Achill and the city of Cleveland was described as the 'gold standard' of how 'sister cities' should work and operate.

Over the weekend a series of events took place to mark the 20th anniversary of the twinning of Mayo County Council, Achill and the city of Cleveland.

The celebrations began on Friday with Mayo County Council hosting a civic reception in honour of Gerry Quinn, founder of the Mayo Society of Cleveland and continued on Saturday with the unveiling of a plaque to mark the 20th anniversary of the twinning and culminated with a gala dinner in Óstán Oileán Acla on Saturday evening.

The official twinning of Mayo County Council, Achill and Cleveland occurred in 2003 when the then Mayor of Cleveland, Jane Campbell travelled to Achill for the former twinning ceremony.

A delegation of over 30 people travelled from Cleveland for the weekend's celebrations which included Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne; Mark Owens, the Irish Honorary Consul in Ohio, as well a representative from the office of the Mayor of Cleveland, Justin Bibb and members of the Achill Cleveland Twinning Committee in Cleveland.

The links between Achill and Cleveland extend back to the nineteenth century when Achill people emigrated in huge numbers to Cleveland to find work. They largely settled in an area known as 'The Angle' and the population flourished around St Malachi Parish in the later part of the nineteenth century.

Speaking following the civic reception on Friday, Mr Ronayne spoke of the influence the Mayo and Achill emigrants had on the city of Cleveland and how this will be honoured during the 200 anniversary celebrations of the building of the Ohio canal.

Building links

He explained that he visited Mayo in May as part of the delegation on the first flight from Cleveland to Dublin and it was important to continue to build on the links between the two communities.

“We have so much in our past and present but we have so much in our future together. We are back for a reason because we were welcomed and feel welcomed here in Co Mayo. The direct flight makes us more connected but it is what we can do in our future with our families and culture and tourism and economic development. We had many exchanges and we look forward to our future together. If we had 200 years together let's have another 200 years together,” he said.

Mr Ronayne also presented Mayo County Council with the Keys of Cuyahoga County in recognition of the link between the two counties as well as other gifts.

Mark Owens, the first ever Irish Honorary Consul in Ohio helped organise the trade mission from Cleveland to Ireland in May and the itinerary included a visit to Achill. He said that Mayor Bibb told him afterwards that following the visit to Achill he knew why the twinning was so important.

“In July we had a recap visit with Mayor Bibb about the trip. He made a comment about the schedule of flying into Dublin at 8.30am and getting on a bus for four hours to Achill Island and then going back to Dublin the next day. He said 'I thought you were nuts'. He then said, 'Now I get it and now I know why we went to Achill Island and start our trip in Achill'.

“He saw the bond between the city of Cleveland and the Mayo people and it was enlightening for him to see this was not just a cultural exchange or ceremonial, there was a bigger picture here.

“When other cities in Ohio are talking about sister cities I say look at the Mayo Cleveland relationship. It is the gold standard in my opinion of how sister sisters should work and operate. It is a 20 year relationship and every year it gets bigger and better. You are the poster child of how this should be done and you are only going to get stronger,” he said.

Direct flight

Chief Executive of Mayo County Council, Kevin Kelly welcomed the delegation from Cleveland and said the council were proud of the twinning agreement.

“We welcome the opportunity to further strengthen the ties over the years across all areas including tourism, culture, education and employment. The recent introduction of the new direct flight from Cleveland to Ireland is a significant step in strengthening our tourism ties. Mayo County Council is committed to do our part to reach out and engage with our diaspora and connect with them and forge meaningful connections into the future,” he said.

Cleveland based-judge, Judge Seán Gallagher was part of the original twinning committee in 2003 and took time to remember the late Steve Mulloy and Con Mangan who were both instrumental in the twinning process in Cleveland.

He also praised Terence Dever, CEO of Comhlacht Forbartha Áitiúil Acla for being a perfect ambassador for Mayo when he visits Cleveland. Judge Gallagher said that people in Mayo should appreciate how much of an effect Mayo emigrants have had on Cleveland life and comment that of all the elected judges in Cleveland, 40 have connections to Mayo.

Kenny Deery, the current Chairman of the Achill Cleveland Twinning Committee congratulated all the people who were instrumental in the twinning process 20 years ago and the current committee looked forward to building on the success into the future.

The 20th anniversary celebrations will continue in October in Cleveland with a delegation from Mayo County Council and Achill to travel to represent the county.