
DATE: Friday, September 26, 1997            TAG: 9709260793

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY JOHN MURPHY, STAFF WRITER  

DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:   87 lines

LINKING ARMS WITH A SISTER CITY A JAPANESE DELEGATION VISITS THE BEACH TO LEARN HOW TO SPARK VOLUNTEERISM IN THEIR COUNTRY.

``IT'S A WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER AND EXPAND OUR COMMUNITY INTEREST.'' - ODU PROFESSOR HIROYUKI HAMADA

It was a day when a bow went further than a handshake.

A delegation of 100 residents from Miyazaki, Japan, arrived in Virginia Beach on Thursday to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the two cities' partnership as sister cities.

Their five-day visit began with sometimes awkward greetings, jet lag, language barriers and gift exchanges.

Miyazaki delegates showered their hosts with dozens of lacquerware baskets and bowls. Beach officials countered with key chains and pewter strawberry plates.

The day ended with the sound of Japanese folk songs and melodies such as ``Sunset at Takachicho'' played by the Miyazaki City Wind Orchestra during a concert at 24th Street Park.

But there is also a practical reason for the visit.

Shigemitsu Tsumura - the thin, earnest mayor of the seaside Japanese city of 300,000 - said he hopes during his stay to learn how to inspire people to volunteer.

The Beach has recruited 40,000 volunteers since 1985 who have contributed time to almost every city department, including libraries, recreation, courts, police and shelters.

All totaled, the 1.5 million volunteer hours donated by residents have saved the city $16 million, city officials estimated.

Tsumura envied those figures.

Asked how large his city's volunteer program was, the mayor drew a deep breath and let out a sigh.

``In Japan, we need to improve upon that,'' he said through a translator. ``There's only a handful of people involved in the true sense. Perhaps, it has to do with the Christian influence in the American way of life. . . . Japan is supplied with heavily tax-subsidized services. But with the dissolving of Japan's macro economy, we need our citizens to offer their help.''

To learn more about the Beach's volunteer programs, the mayor and several dozen other Miyazaki city officials will be spending today with some of the city's rescue squads and police patrols. Other members of the group will tour a post office, the courthouse and, at the visitors' request, something not ordinarily advertised in the the Beach's tourist information - the City Hall complex's cooling system.

On Thursday afternoon, Beach Mayor Meyera E. Oberndorf and Miyazaki Mayor Tsumura dedicated a Japanese garden in Red Wing Park, featuring a bright red Torii gate, bamboo groves and two large stones separated by a sea of sand, a symbol of the two cities' friendship.

That relationship began about 15 years ago when Hiroyuki Hamada, a professor at Old Dominion University, shepherded the first links between the cities. Since then, more than 300 Beach residents and 600 Miyazaki residents have been involved in visits or exchanges.

In 1992, the cities officially sealed their friendship by registering as sister cities.

``It's a wonderful opportunity to bring people together and expand our community interest,'' explained Hamada.

Hamada said the cities have much more than a friendship in common. They are both resort towns. Miyazaki, with a subtropical climate, was once a popular honeymoon destination, but now attracts business conventions and golfers.

Like the Beach, Miyazaki also is struggling to accommodate a growing senior citizen population, Tsumura said.

Still, he said, there are many differences. Miyazaki is bordered by mountains that climb straight out of the sea.

``Here it is flat and the air is clean,'' he said. ``It is refreshing to visit your city.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

MOTOYA NAKAMURA/The Virginian-Pilot

Miyazaki City Wind Orchestra members Mari Ei, left, and Shiori

Iwamoto enjoy the new Miyazaki Japanese Garden at Red Wing Park.

Map

SISTER CITY - MIYAZAKI, JAPAN

In 1992, Virginia Beach and Miyazaki officially sealed their

friendship.

Photo

MOTOYA NAKAMURA/The Virginian-Pilot