Chronology

2003

February 26, 2003 – magdeburg-nashville.com goes online

The bilingual Internet portal on city partnership, which the German-American Dialog Center Magdeburg and Yaway Media Magdeburg developed and created,will be presented to the public in the Magdeburg city hall and go officially online.

March 6, 2003 – The proposed resolution DS0052/03 will be submitted to the city council for a decision.

Afterward, Magdeburg capital of the state of Saxony-Anhalt in the Federal Republic of Germany will conclude a city partnership agreement based on the partnership criteria of the German Conference of Cities with Nashville capital of the state of Tennessee in the United States of America.

What is more, the Lord Mayor is authorized to conclude a city partnership agreement with the city of Nashville. An official visit to Nashville will take place in May 2003 for this purpose. The city council reached a majority decision, declaring itself in big favour of the city partnership with Nashville.

May 24-29, 2003 – Official Delegation from the State Capital Magdeburg in Nashville

An official delegation from the city of Magdeburg headed by Mayor Dr. Lutz Trümper visited Nashville from May 24 through 29. The highlight of the visit was the signing of the Sister Cities agreement on May 28, 2003.

June 28, 2003 – Nashville Day 2003 in Magdeburg

As an event to kick off the city partnership, a “Nashville Day” was held on June 28, 2003 in the Johanniskirche under the patronage of Minister of Education and Culture Prof. Dr. Jan-Hendrik Olbertz and American Consul General Fletcher M. Burton. The varied program revolving around city partnership included the Freien Kammerspiele’s play “freiekammerspiele goes Nashville” and discussions with Dialog Center grantees.

Summer of 2003 – Student Exchange

Altogether seventeen school students participated in the first Magdeburg-Nashville student exchange. Daniela Haase, Dialog Center board member, traveled along to Nashville as the chaperone. The Stadtsparkasse Magdeburg’s youth foundation supported the exchange.

October 1-4, 2003 – Official first visit from the Mayor of Nashville, Mr. Bill Purcell, and a Delegation from Sister Cities of Nashville

Mayor Bill Purcell, President Doug Berry and other members of Sister Cities of Nashville took part in the official festivities in Magdeburg on the Day of German Unity. The Dialog Center held an extraordinary meeting of members to honor Mayor Bill Purcell on Saturday, October 4, 2003 in the domed hall of the Millennium Tower at the Elbauenpark. At the meeting, honorary membership in the Dialog Center was bestowed on Mayor Purcell and a pair of hemispheres decorated by Magdeburg school students were presented to him.

October 4, 2003 – Unveiling of the Partnerstadt Nashville Sign at the City Limits

On Saturday, October 4, 2003, the first sign at the Magdeburg city limits with the crest of our new Sister City Nashville was ceremoniously unveiled at the city limits on the Magdeburger Ring in the presence of Bill Purcell (Mayor of Nashville), Dr. Lutz Trümper (Mayor Magdeburg), Gerhard Heinl (Chair of the City Council) and Dr. Uwe Küster (Chair of the Dialog Center).

November 15-21, 2003 – Magdeburg Hemispheres for Nashville

A delegation headed by Dialog Center spokesperson Georg von der Gablentz stayed in Nashville from November 15 through 21 2003. The main event on November 19, 2003 was the ceremonial presentation of the hemispheres to the our Sister City’s mayor Mr. Bill Purcell and the Adventure Science Museum.

Members of the delegation were Paul- Gerhard Stieger (Otto von Guericke University student council spokesperson) and Alexander Mannewitz (Yaway Media).