Marrakech and Scottsdale Continue Sister City Process
Some Members of the Moroccan community here at the Valley
Scottsdale Sister Cities hosted Vice Mayor Khalid El Fataoui and Director, Centre Regional d'Investissement, Abderrazzaq Moumni from May 20 - 28. The visit is a continuation of the Sister City process between Scottsdale and Marrakech. The schedule of activities involved significant numbers of local citizens and organizations interested in the relationship with Marrakech. Members of the Moroccan community discovered significant numbers of their Moroccan heritage and culture living in the valley, more than they knew prior to the visit by El Fataoui and Moumni.
The visitors were received by the Chamber of Commerce, Scottsdale Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Economic Vitality Department for Scottsdale who made presentations on the process employed to keep Scottsdale growing with a strong economy. Councilman Ron McCullagh led the group through the Traffic Control Center, Civic Center facilities and coordinated visits to the water campuses. We were greeted by Moroccan born Moncef Tihami, Water Resources Engineer, at the Hayden/McDonald facilities. The group visited Troon Golf's corporate offices where their approach to golf course management, design and operations was presented. Future discussions will take place in Marrakech.
Vice Mayor El Fataoui and Mr. Moumni visited Scottsdale Unified School District and held important meetings about exploring meaningful education exchanges. Dr. Althe Allen, Executive Director of Middle and Secondary Schools, greeted the delegation. It was agreed that meaningful affiliations between two cities will allow citizens of both to better understand one another. It is important for the citizens of both cities to go beyond the stereotyped images of both countries as portrayed by the media in both countries. Meaningful exchanges of teachers and students, as well as learning the language of each country, can help overcome past misconceptions.
They visited Desert Mountain High School and addressed Chris Fredericks' American History Class and Susan Mochir's French class. It was explained that Morocco is a strong democracy and they respect human rights. Beyond that, the freedom of women to dress as they please is a fact of life. They also asked that Morocco not be lumped in with images of other Arab states. They addressed Ms. Mochir's class in French and explained that Moroccan students learn both French and Arabic early in school and must study a third language, usually English, in high school.
The International Studies Group of Scottsdale Community College made presentations on their programs. They have applied for a Fulbright Grant to send teachers to Morocco in 2008. We were most excited to hear this news as it demonstrated the strength of our community relationship and image with Scottsdale Sister Cities.
Moroccan born and valley resident, Abdessamad Tridane, Professor of Mathematics at ASU, arranged a tour of ASU's Gammage Auditorium, ASU's Bio-Design Laboratory and the Decision Theater facilities. This impressive visit demonstrated ASU's value. Chris Rivadalla, Octogone Hotel owner in Marrakech, and Scottsdale resident, hosted a group of 36 at Pinnacle Peak Patio Café. Chris, a strong supporter of developing the relationship, continues to provide much appreciated liaison and logistic help between Scottsdale and Marrakech.
We hosted a reception for Vice Mayor El Fataoui and Director Mounmi at the Chaparral Suites. Approximately 65 persons attended, including many Moroccans, local business and civic leaders and members of Scottsdale Sister Cities and WAC. Gifts were exchanged and a protocol agreement signed to continue development of the relationship.
Especially significant, the visitors commented that the relationship being fostered by our two communities is the way to peace and shows that terrorism can be defeated.
As a result of the developing relationship between the two cities, local Muslims and Jews from Morocco have formed a Moroccan Club.
Samad Benzrioual hosted a dinner for 30 people of the Moroccan Community and the visiting dignitaries. Samad was also selected Chairman of the Marrakech Committee. The Board of Directors affirmed the decision. Nisim Dadon, a member of the Sephardic Cultural Center, hosted a dinner for Scottsdale Muslims and Jews in his home, with El Fataoui as a special guest.
Many valley Moroccan's contributed to making our guests visit to Scottsdale so successful. It goes without saying; we could not have had a successful visit without their help. All in all this was a most exciting chapter in the history of Scottsdale Sister Cities as we fulfilled our mission statement by bringing significant members of different cultures together.
Roger D. Nelson