Salt Lake City marking 50 years of ties to Japan 'sister'

Whether he was getting a haircut or simply doing some shopping, Ross Chambless regularly crossed paths with locals in Matsumoto, Japan, who knew all about their sister city in the United States.

"They'd say things like, 'I went to Salt Lake City when I was a kid,"' Chambless said. "I was amazed at how many people in Matsumoto were aware of this relationship with Salt Lake City and how many people have visited Salt Lake City."

It's a different story here in Utah's capital city.

"From my observations, the community here really isn't aware of (Salt Lake City's) sister-city relationships," he said.

Chambless is hoping to change that with "Ceremonies: A Tale of Sister Cities" — a traveling art exhibit that uses letters, photos and interviews to tell the story of Salt Lake City's longtime relationship with Matsumoto.

The exhibit, which celebrates the 50th year of friendship between the cities, is on display through July 31 on the main floor of the Salt Lake City Library, 210 E. 400 South.

Posterlike panels chronicle the origins of the cities' relationship, which began in 1958 — two years after President Dwight D. Eisenhower initiated the "People-to-People" program, forerunner of the sister-city movement.

"If we are going to take advantage of the assumption that all people want peace, then the problem is for people to get together and to leap governments ... to work out not one method but thousands of methods by which people can gradually learn a little bit more of each other," Eisenhower said during his White House Conference on Citizen Diplomacy.

A year later, Sister Cities International was founded. The nonprofit organization encourages sister-city partnerships between U.S. and international communities, answering Eisenhower's call to "promote peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation — one individual, one community at a time."

Chambless was introduced at an early age to the sister-cities program. His father, University of Utah political science professor Tim Chambless, worked in the late 1970s and early '80s for then-Salt Lake City Mayor Ted Wilson.

As Ross Chambless was growing up, the family often hosted the Japanese delegation and students who would visit Salt Lake City during the summertime as part of sister-city celebrations.

It wasn't until he moved to Matsumoto in 2004 to teach English, however, that Ross Chambless began to understand the significance of the relationship, he said.