Three teenagers from Peoria are heading to Friedrichshafen, Germany this summer. It's a small number, and the people who run the program know it.
Before the pandemic, the numbers were very different. "When our family first hosted in 2001, it was normal for 20 students to travel in one direction every year," said Eric Hoadley, president of the Peoria-based Friends of Friedrichshafen.
The exchange pairs teenagers with host families for three weeks. Patrick Roesler, chair of the Peoria Sister City Commission, has chaperoned the program for years and said what students take away is always the same.
"They come back with messages about how similar we are. You know, we may have bigger refrigerators in the United States than they do in Germany, but when it comes down to it, teenagers are teenagers, and they form quite close bonds," said Roesler.
On Thursday, a dinner in Peoria drew a delegation of about 25 from Germany, including Friedrichshafen Oberbürgermeister [Lord Mayor] Simon Blümcke, who told those gathered, "I sincerely hope that this partnership will continue to remain vibrant and alive, that young people from Friedrichshafen will continue traveling to Peoria, and young people from Peoria, of course, to Friedrichshafen."
Jamie Wenger was one of those young people when she did the exchange in 1989 and 1990, first hosting a German student, then traveling to Friedrichshafen herself.
"It was life-changing. My whole, seriously, my whole life — I have a degree in German, I have tons of German friends. The program was so fantastic because it just made it real," she said.
Kathy Doherty has been involved with the program since before the sister city agreement was even signed. Two of her children did the exchange. She said the setup is unlike any other travel experience.
"It's not like you go on a tour bus and go wherever, you live with the family. If they go on vacation, you go on vacation … you get to do exactly the same thing."
Natural connection
The exchange is believed to be the longest continuously operating youth exchange connected to a sister city program in the United States. The program has sent more than 900 students over five decades, interrupted only by the pandemic.
Matthias Benz, chairman of the management board and CEO of Zeppelin GmbH — and a Friedrichshafen native — looked to the future of the relationship between the two cities.
"It's all great to celebrate the past, but what about tomorrow? Where are the young people from Peoria? Where are the young people from Friedrichshafen? They are the future." said Benz.
![Friedrichshafen Oberbürgermeister [Lord Mayor] Simon Blumcke (right) speaks with guests at Thursday's 50th anniversary dinner celebrating Peoria's sister city partnership.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ff27223/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5184x3193+0+132/resize/880x542!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F21%2F76%2F6907a45c486cae11d292dd74aab2%2Fimg-5850.JPG)
![Key to the City of Peoria which was given to Friedrichshafen Oberbürgermeister [Lord Mayor] Simon Blumcke.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5f44654/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5184x3193+0+132/resize/880x542!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F99%2F12%2F13a679fb4d939cfb692dde60cf30%2Fimg-5760.JPG)
![Friedrichshafen Oberbürgermeister [Lord Mayor] Simon Blumcke.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/107082e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5184x3193+0+132/resize/880x542!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F32%2F0b%2F836676e34964a5c0212d4ff5cec9%2Fimg-6128.JPG)
![Friedrichshafen Oberbürgermeister [Lord Mayor] Simon Blumcke and Peoria Mayor Rita Ali with their gifts. A key to Peoria went to Friedrichshafen and an Ottmar Hörl sculpture to Peoria.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/2f2979b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5184x3193+0+132/resize/880x542!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F79%2Fa3%2F4393f04840c3933192353ee56b23%2Fimg-6223.JPG)
The sister city relationship dates to 1976, when then-Peoria Mayor Dick Carver and Friedrichshafen Oberbürgermeister Max Grünbeck signed the first agreement. The two cities had a natural connection. Caterpillar and Zeppelin, the German company once known for building the Hindenburg, had long done business together.
Zeppelin is now the largest Caterpillar dealer in the world. Over 50 years, both cities say the partnership grew into something far greater than commerce.
Peoria Mayor Rita Ali, who is scheduled to visit Friedrichshafen in September, told the room why she thinks programs like this matter now more than ever.
"Sister cities are more important today than ever before. In a world that can feel divided, sister cities remind us that respect is possible, that dialogue matters, and that peace is built through relationships — not only by governments, but by people." she said.
Blümcke, speaking personally just before the formal program began, described what the partnership means to him.
"I think it's very important to have this bridge over the Atlantic Ocean between Peoria and Friedrichshafen, two cities very similar, but far away," he said. "There's so many human bridges, like there's an encounter of the youth, there's an encounter due to business with Caterpillar and Zeppelin."
Later, addressing the room, he put it simply. "It's not about official documents or ceremonial receptions. It's about people."
The evening included an exchange of gifts. Ali presented Blümcke with a key to the City of Peoria. In return, the Friedrichshafen delegation brought a small sculpture by internationally known artist Ottmar Hörl, a figure of a boy holding a zeppelin aloft, based on a fountain that has stood in Friedrichshafen since 1909. Blumcke said it was one of the last remaining from a series of 300.
As a symbol of the anniversary, the two cities also exchanged park benches, both inscribed and to be installed in the other city.
As guests left for the evening, the Jefferson Street Bridge glowed in the black, red, and gold of the German flag.
Families interested in the exchange program can contact the Friends of Friedrichshafen through the Peoria Sister City Commission. Students should be between 15 and 19 years old.
