News Details (Posted: November 30, 2005):

Norco OKs sister city deal, By Amy Frye, Staff Writer Daily Bulletin

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Fire department exchange leads to relationship with La Barca, Mexico NORCO - A single old fire engine sitting around collecting dust sparked a cultural exchange that has ignited the city's first ever sister city relationship. The City Council approved a final agreement on Nov. 16 between Norco and the city of La Barca, Mexico, cementing the two municipalities as sister cities. The partnership began back in February, when Fire Chief Jack Frye sought to find a home for a 20-year-old surplus fire engine that sat dormant in the old fire station on Fifth Street after the rest of the department relocated to Sixth Street. Frye had several offers for the engine, including a group in Orange County that wanted to restore it and a fire academy that wanted to use it for training. But it was La Barca that won out in the end. "They had a department but they did not have a pumper," Frye said. "They had an old water truck that they used -- this was their first real pumper." Former Corona firefighter Bill Melendez, who has family in La Barca, was instrumental in setting up the exchange. Melendez has been working with "bomberos," or firefighters, in South and Central America for more than 20 years, and after orchestrating the sister city relationship between Corona and Ocotlan, a neighboring city to La Barca, he caught wind of the extra engine in Norco. "They have 86,000 people in the city without a fire department, and we'd been intending to get some help there," Melendez said. Representatives from La Barca first came to see the engine and train with firefighters in Norco on Feb. 15. La Barca local government offered to become sister cities during this trip. During training, the La Barca firefighters also toured Norco's new fire station 22 and made plans to build a similar fire house and training center in La Barca to serve the entire state of Jalisco. La Barca was able to haul its new engine the 2,200 miles home in July, after transportation permits cleared. And on Aug. 22, a group from Norco traveled to La Barca to enjoy a firefighter celebration. Melendez said he hears firsthand from relatives and La Barca residents who have benefited from the new public services. "We provided a service that they never had. Hospitals are more than an hour away," Melendez said. "People used to have heart attacks and they didn't ever know that they had the opportunity to save those lives." During this public service exchange, both city governments had gone back and forth hammering out details on an official sister city document. Part of the official agreement signed this month outlines plans for each city to establish a committee that will confer each year and develop exchange programs. Norco City Manager Jeff Allred said that while no formal programs have been established, some ideas include foreign exchanges of students, youth sports and service clubs. Allred also said that since La Barca is located next to a river and is home to many horses, it was a good match for Norco. Before entering into the agreement, the city researched surrounding communities that participate in the sister city program, started in 1956 by President Eisenhower. Corona has sister cites in Mexico, Japan and Denmark; Riverside has sister cities in Mexico, India, China, South Korea and Japan; and Ontario has sister cities in Mexico, Canada, New Zealand and Switzerland. This is the first sister city for Norco. "I think the whole purpose of it is to enter into some type of formal agreement where you talk about customs and mores of a society so people can educationally understand the different and diverse cultures in the world," said Norco Mayor Herb Higgins. While the initial benefits to La Barca are tangible improvements in firefighting and public safety, Higgins said he hopes citizens of Norco will benefit by learning about their neighbors to the south. "It's an important message for Americans, that we accept people on an individual basis and not stereotype them where you are alienating them before you ever get to meet them," Higgins said. Amy Frye can be reached by e-mail at amy.frye@dailybulletin.com or by phone at (909) 483-9347.