No.１７７

A local newsle�er quarterly issued
Yamato Takada Lismore Sister City Associa�on,Nara,Japan
Spring Issue,2019

Contact：
Yamato Takada Lismore Sister City Association
TEL：０７４５−２２−１１０１
http://www.city.yamatotakada.nara.jp/lismore/

We do hope The Bamboo Shoots born out of the soil of Yamato-Takada will grow up and act as a go-between for the ci�zens in Lismore and in Yamato-Takada

New Mayor’s Assumption
Greetings:
Hello! My name is Taizo
Horiuchi, who was formallyinducted as new mayor ofYamato Takada city. I’m very
happy to say a few words,
for the first time, to you thereaders of this newsletter ‘theBamboo Shoots.’ I take pridein the first mayor of theTaizo Horiuchi
new era ‘Reiwa.’ I’m feelingtense and determined at thethought of my duties and responsibilities.
The agreement of the Lismore and Yamato Takada
Sister City Relationship was the first to be signed
between Australia and Japan, which, as a matterof fact, the citizens of Yamato Takada are very
proud of. I think it a great honor for me to work
together with you to make the friendship much
deeper as mayor as well as honorary president ofYamato Takada Sister City Association. In addition,I realize the length of history of the relationship.
I mean that the 56 years are so long that I must
think highly of the weight of its history.
In the promotion of this relationship between thetwo cities we have owed a great deal to Consulate
General of Japan, Sydney, and Council of Local
Authorities for International Relations, Sydney, aswell. So here I would like to express my profoundgratitude to all the people concerned for theirheartfelt understanding and cooperation.

Mayoral Retirement
Greetings:
I, Masakatsu Yoshida, haveserved up, without any big
deal, the four terms, or my16
years, as mayor of Yamato
Takada City.
Since my assumption ofa mayoral post, I believe,
the Sister City School and
Masakatsu Yoshida Friendship projects between
the two cities, Yamato
Takada and Lismore, havebeen very fruitful and productive in many ways.
I have spent so much wonderful time deepening
mutual understanding with a lot of Lismore local

I haven’t met Mayor of Lismore City Council, Isaac,yet, but I’ve learned to know that he has shown to
us a clear understanding of our relationship since
he assumed his new position Mayor.
Local people as well as staff of Lismore Council
lovingly welcomed the visiting party fromTakada at the 55th anniversary celebration heldin Lismore. And then mayors of both of the cities
willingly signed the agreement again.
I’m looking forward to meeting Mayor Isaac andcity staff as well through Internet on August 7.
Yamato Takada Catholic Kindergarten, which gave
us an opportunity to have sister city school system
in Yamato Takada for the first time, and Lismore
Preschool signed the agreement to be sister schools
this year. I am going to strongly support this sistercity school system. I am sure that children of bothcities have a good time through this sister city
programs.
Lastly I would like all of you to support
the projects of Yamato Takada Sister City
Relationship. Thank you so much.

citizens and exchange students through useful andinteresting talks.
After the 50th anniversary of our sister city
foundation, when I first met the previous mayor,Jenny, the relationship of mutual trust andcooperation between the two cities has been
deepened much more than before, I think.
I remember still now that when we visited Lismore
to celebrate the 50th anniversary of our sistercity friendship and held the Takada City Day,
many Lismore city council staff, including Jenny,kindly gave a heartfelt hand to us and we wereable to have the Day ended in a great success.
We were very happy that a lot of school children
and Lismore residents came and joined us in theGoonellabah Sports Center. I also remember thatmayor Jenny told me to have a smile, noticing

my bored face because of the late commemorative
dinner on schedule. These two episodes were
unforgettable to me.
Afterward Lismore council set up her own Sister
City Friendship Committee, and it looks like it
has been working on the sister city projects morepositively. I look forward to the joint ceremony
projects through Internet on August 7 every year,
which is the birthday of the foundation of Sister
City Relations.
Right after Jenny, new mayor Isaac overcame a
big flood in and around Lismore, which happened
soon after he took office. After that he showed a
deep understanding about the sister city relations.
I really appreciated it. In June last year wecelebrated the 55th anniversary of the Sister CityRelationship and at that time Isaac and I took partin the big event Lantern Parade, which was thethird one that I never forget forever.
I passed a baton to my successor, Taizou Horiuchi,
who, I believe, has much understanding about thesister city relationship between the two cities andmakes every effort to promote the relations much
more than before.
I wish Isaac good health and good luck, hopingthat the two cities become more prosperous
and help each other deepen and strengthen thefriendship much more.
I will support the sister city relationship projects
as one of the citizens of Yamato Takada.
Thank you so much.

President Greeting:
Lismore-Yamato Takada
Sister City Association

to make this friendship association successful in its
true sense of the meaning. I really appreciate ourseniors’ great effort.
Mr. Taizo Horiuchi, our new mayor, is honorable
president of this association, who will surely
help us do our duty just as the previous mayorMasakatsu Yoshida did.
Mr. Yoshida attended the Lantern Parade inLismore last year together with our mascot ‘Mikuchan,’ who is supposed to take part in the parade
this year as well under the support of Lismore
Council. Lismore people walk and parade alongwith Miku-chan in high spirits around Lismore,appealing how cute and pretty Miku-chan is. I
really want to thank all Lismore people concerned
for their kindness. Since this event is expected
to be held every year, I believe that the bond ofboth of the cities will be getting stronger and thefriendship between the two cities will be getting
deeper and deeper. I do hope for your cooperationand goodwill toward our association.
Thank you so much.

I would like to thank you allfor your cooperative support
to Lismore-Yamato Takada
Sister City Association.
We have the beginning of
the new era from Heisei toReiwa this year. We have a
Yoshikiyo Wakimoto new feeling or hope for thenew era somehow.
We have experienced
three eras in due course, through Showa, Heiseiand Reiwa, along with the development of ourassociation. Feeling that time flies surprisingly
fast, we realize that the sister city association
has passed in the road to success, due to deepfriendship and goodwill of your own showing
during the long term. There is a proverb‘Persistence will pay off,’ so we have to showrespect to our seniors’ persistence, who tried hard