by By DELANEY WALKER
Banner Staff Writer
MEMBERS
OF THE CAMBODIAN DELEGATION were given a tour of the Whirlpool factory
Monday afternoon. The youngest member, Heang Sokhour watches as
Bernadette Bolo-Duthy thoroughly checks out a stove on display. Julie
Martinez and Bienvenido Raneses talk in the background. Banner photo,
DELANEY WALKER
A delegation from Cambodia was greeted Monday morning in a
welcoming ceremony at the Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of Commerce before
spending the day touring Cleveland.
“It is nice to have our
honored guests here with us today,” said Gary Farlow, Chamber president.
“Welcome to Cleveland. This is a great honor to us. We are looking
forward to a hopefully very long-term relationship with you and your
government.”
Farlow welcomed Cleveland Mayor Tom Rowland and
state Rep. Kevin Brooks, as well. Presentations were made by Dr. Bill
George, chairman of the People for Care and Learning board, Rowland and
Dr. Fred Garmon, PCL International director. Gift bags were given to
each member of the Cambodian delegation. The bags held items made
locally in Cleveland.
Cameron Fisher, Church of God public affairs director, gave a brief description of the items.
“Some
of these things are made only in Cleveland, Tenn. Like M&M’s,”
Fisher said, pausing for applause. “These Twix bars are only made in
Cleveland.”
Additional gifts included a Voices of Lee music CD, a
Lee University shirt, items from Merck & Co., batteries and a
“rapper snapper” among other items. One special gift was presented only
to His Excellency Governor Kep Chuk Tema of Phnom Penh. Rowland gave the
foreign governor a key to the city. Rowland joked, “I have not
discovered what door it fits yet.”
The visiting dignitary answered several questions following the Chamber welcome ceremony.
“We
are very happy to form a sister city with Cleveland,” he said. “This is
our first visit to the United States and we love Cleveland. It is a
very beautiful city. When we drive through Cleveland it is like a modern
forest.”
The Cambodian delegation members were given a private
tour of the Whirlpool Cleveland Division manufacturing facility. Dicky
Walters, plant leader, gave a presentation and personally led the
delegation through a short tour. Cameras continued to snap pictures as
the Cambodians made their way through the factory. Various appliances
manufactured in the Cleveland factory were on display and the delegation
were given a peek into the assembly line process.
“This trip
has gone great,” said Julie Martinez, a worker with PCL. “It really
seems to be deepening ties. For Cambodians, relationship is everything.
To get this opportunity is wonderful.”
The tour of Cleveland
continued after lunch with a visit to the Amazon factory. An official
sister city dinner on the campus of Lee University brought a close to
Monday’s events. The delegation will be touring additional factories and
local businesses Tuesday. The rest of the week will be spent with Dr.
John Gregory, seeing a NASCAR race event, touring additional factories,
and meeting Gov. Bill Haslam.
According to a recent People for
Care and Learning press release, the group traveling with the governor
includes Phnom Penh’s director of administration, director of finance,
director of planning and investment, and other dignitaries. His wife and
daughter also accompany the delegation.
No comments:
Post a Comment