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Moka's 70th Anniversary Celebration

The city of Moka celebrated its 70th year as a city in October of 2024. In honor of this special occasion, a delegation from Glendora City Hall and the Glendora Sister City Association traveled to Moka for five days of festivities.

While it may have been a short trip, it was full of activities and memorable experiences like participating in Moka's 70th Anniversary Parade, with delegates from Moka's sister cities Harvey, Australia and Douliu, Taiwan.

Glendora City Hall staff were able to meet and spend a day in Moka with their counterparts at Moka City Hall so that they could learn more about how local governments operate in Japan, as well as look for ways to implement new ideas in Glendora. There were also official visits to Glendora's two sister schools, Moka Higashi Junior High School and Nakamura Junior High School.

Our Glendora Delegation participated in many cultural activities, exploring the city of Moka, joining a traditional tea ceremony, and visiting nearby Nikko where we received a special tour & blessing from the head priest at UNESCO World Heritage Site Nikko Toshogu Shrine.

During this visit, the Glendora Sister City Association hosted a workshop teaching Moka residents about American autumn culture and crafts.

We were honored to be invited to celebrate this landmark occasion with our friends in Moka!

Glendora Rotary Club - Aug. 13, 2024

On August 13th, Glendora Sister City Association President Hannah Majidi and member Ritsuko Rowe were invited to give a presentation to the Rotary Club of Glendora about Glendora's sister cities.

Following the presentation, there was a group discussion which included potential ideas for futher collaboration between the GSCA, Glendora Rotary Club, and Rotary clubs in our sister cities. Additionally, the group visited the Bicentennial Mural in the Bidwell Forum and hear about the mural's history & symbolism from Glendora Library staff.

Thank you for inviting us to promote Moka and Mérida, Glendora Rotary Club!

Photos courtesy of Susanne Hayek and Rudy Hayek, Rotary Club of Glendora

2024 Glendora Visit to Moka

During the summer of 2024, Goddard Middle School and Sandburg Middle School made their first trip to their sister schools in Moka since the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Students and their chaperones had a very warm welcome to Moka, enjoying a variety of fun summer activities including participating in Moka's annual Summer Festival!

Photos courtesy of  Miyoko Nakano and Masayuki Murakami

Glendora Culture Fest - May 18, 2024

The GSCA was honored to be a part of Glendora's first-ever Glendora Culture Fest.

At our booth, we shared information about our sister cities and passed out prizes to attendees via our prize wheel. We also promoted resources from Japan House LA, CLAIR, and the Consulate-General of Japan in LA for those interested in learning more about Japan and Japanese culture.

2023 Moka Visit to Glendora

Remarks from Host Families and Students

"It was an amazing experience. I would recommend it to anyone who has the extra time and space in your home. I feel like we made a good friend across the globe and we’ll always have a special bond with that person. And the family as well even though we never officially met. It makes me want to visit Japan and have my kids experience their culture through this program too. "

"It was a life-learning experience. Never had I thought of doing this, but my daughter, being interested in school events, was intrigued by this, so we gave it a try. And this is just something that everyone should get the chance to experience." 

"It allowed me to see another culture and that even language barriers can’t stop people from learning and talking to each other."

"When our student arrived, we instantly connected even with the language barrier. I did not expect that he would become a member of our family that week not just a visitor."