Dear Bath-Tsugaru Sister City Exchange Program board members, participants, and families,
My name is Inga Strinz, and I have been the Coordinator for International Relations at the City Office in Tsugaru since July of 2014. I’m writing this message to all of you to encourage you to reach out to me with questions or concerns regarding the exchange. Since I am based in Tsugaru, there may be areas where I am not able to resolve your query, but I will do my best to support the program on the Bath side in any way I can.
A little background information about me and my position: I am at Tsugaru City’s disposal as a resource for all things related to internationalism and/or English. My job mainly consists of facilitating and promoting grassroots internationalization efforts in Tsugaru City. As an employee of the municipal government, and specifically the Planning and Coordination Division within the General Affairs Department, I am one small part of the Tsugaru Sister City Association—which is the organization that runs exchange programs with Tsugaru’s 3 sister cities: Shiraoi in Hokkaido, Kashiwa in Chiba (both within Japan) and Bath, Maine in America.
In addition, I serve as the liaison between Tsugaru and Bath for the Sister City Exchange Program. It is my job to translate program-related materials and correspondences. I also interpret for both groups when they are staying in Bath and in Tsugaru.
I have also been working closely with Anne this year to strengthen the web presence of the exchange program in Bath by increasing Facebook activity and updating the official program website. This work has been done independently of my duties to the Tsugaru City Office, but I am more than happy to help the Bath side of the exchange in any way I can.
It is also my sincerest wish to make myself available as a resource for the board, host families, and participants from the Maine side of the exchange. If you have any questions relating to Tsugaru City’s role in the exchange, or want to know more about the traveling or hosting experience, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me. I am happy to answer any question from broad strokes down to specific inquiries.
You can contact me via email at: strinzic@gmail.com
I also use Skype, so please get in touch with me via email if you would like to set up a session!