An early Christmas gift just arrived at the main fire station in Tyler’s sister city in Poland. The commander of the fire brigade in Jelenia Góra recently unboxed a customized American-style fire helmet, a symbol of gratitude from Tyler Fire Chief David Coble. In late September, Coble was part of a small group of representatives…
Tag: Europe
Small rose garden in Poland promotes Tyler as ‘Rose Capital of America’
Tyler’s Municipal Rose Garden, the largest in America, is making its mark in a city more than five thousand miles from Texas. Tyler’s sister city in southwest Poland has established a small flower garden in a city park as a symbol of cooperation between international partner cities. The modest rose bed in Jelenia Góra is…
WATCH: Future American President visits Tyler’s Polish sister city in 1800
Jelenia Góra, Poland is quite proud of a future American President’s visit in the year 1800. Click here to watch.
Professors from Poland, Tyler Junior College share perspectives through international exchange
Faculty and students at Tyler Junior College are gaining a broader perspective on the world through an ongoing exchange partnership with Karkonosze University of Applied Science in Poland. Located in Tyler’s sister city of Jelenia Góra, in southwest Poland, the public college of about 1,000 students offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in the fields of…
Namesake of Tyler’s first hospital, current chaplain share common connection to Poland
The namesake of Tyler’s CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Hospital and a chaplain currently serving patients there share an interesting connection. Polish-born Mother Frances Siedliska founded the order of religious known as the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth in 1875. Years later in the 1930s, 16 sisters came to Tyler from Chicago to operate…
Tyler Sister Cities delegation incorporates barbecue, dancing into citizen diplomacy in Poland
While Polish and English may sound vastly different, the Tyler Sister Cities delegation is quickly learning they speak the same language as their counterparts in Jelenia Góra: barbecue. On the fourth day of a mission to Tyler’s sister city in Poland, the East Texas team took a break from meetings over educational and cultural exchange…
Tyler’s sister city cuts ties with Russian partner, signs agreements with Ukrainian cities
As Russia marks the annexation of territories in eastern Ukraine on Friday, Tyler’s sister city in Poland is making a bold statement about the war. Jelenia Góra held an official signing ceremony in a historic theater to mark new partnerships with two cities in Ukraine. Earlier in the year, Jelenia Góra severed its sister city…
WATCH: Day 3 of East Texas delegation’s visit to Polish sister city
Lane walks through a promenade in Jelenia Góra to share observations and a surprise street performance.
East Texas missionaries providing housing, relief to Ukrainian refugees in Poland
A team of 25 missionaries from the East Texas-based Youth With A Mission, or YWAM, are on a two-month trip to Poland, providing outreach and immediate aid to Ukrainian refugees who have fled violence in their home country. Josh and Meg McClung are leading an outreach team through MercyWorks, a YWAM ministry. This is the…
East Texas delegation visits Ukrainian refugee center in Poland
Members of a delegation from the City of Tyler and the Tyler Sister Cities organization visited a Ukrainian refugee resource center set up in Tyler’s sister city of Jelenia Góra, Poland on Wednesday. Much of the food and supplies handed out here were purchased with private donations from East Texas effort that collected more than…
Tyler Fire Chief tours modern station in Polish sister city, proposes firefighter exchange
On Wednesday, Tyler Fire Chief David Coble toured a recently-constructed fire station in Tyler’s sister city of Jelenia Góra, Poland. Coble is traveling with a group of representatives from East Texas to deepen the partnership between the two communities. His Polish counterpart led the delegation on a tour of Jelenia Góra’s main fire station, an…
East Texas student art project presented to Ukrainian refugee children in Poland
A message of hope from East Texas has made its way into the hands of children forced to flee the conflict in Ukraine. On Wednesday, a delegation from the City of Tyler and the Tyler Sister Cities Organization presented the artwork of East Texas schoolchildren to a refugee resource center in Jelenia Góra, Poland. It…
City of Tyler sending delegation to sister city in Poland
A delegation from the City of Tyler and other community groups will make a diplomatic mission to its sister city, Jelenia Góra, Poland, this week to strengthen ties between the two communities. Representatives of the City of Tyler include Fire Chief David Coble, City Engineer Darin Jennings, Tyler Sister Cities Organization board member Mickey Slimp,…
WATCH: Site of the post-WWII Potsdam Conference
In the the summer of 1945, Cecilienhof Palace was the site of the Potsdam Conference between the U.S., Soviet Union, and Great Britain.
My Instagram Top 10: Back in Berlin
History, both triumphant and tragic, comes alive in Berlin, Germany. Click here to see some of my favorite sites.
Thousands gather at Germany’s Brandenburg Gate to celebrate anniversary of Berlin Wall falling
On the historic night of November 9, 1989, East and West Germans danced together on top of the Berlin Wall. Hours earlier, anyone crossing the border would have been shot by GDR state security. 30 years later, a crowd of 100 thousand returned to Berlin’s historic Brandenburg Gate, which was once surrounded by the wall,…
WATCH: Historic 3D video projected on Berlin buildings
Click here to watch scenes of 1989 projected on buildings to bring history alive.
Fmr. Ambassador reflects on George HW Bush’s role in German reunification
As the world marks 30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, a former diplomat is reflecting on his tenure as the first U.S. ambassador to Germany following reunification. Robert M. Kimmitt held the post from 1991 to 1993, though his ties to Europe predate his birth. Like 20 percent of Americans, Kimmitt traces…
Historical group explores, documents Cold War stories from Berlin’s underground
Escaping the surveillance and oppression of the East German government during the Cold War often came at great risk. The impressively complex and often dangerous acts of desperation are highlighted in a series of tours organized by a group of Berliners who work to explore and preserve the history of the city’s underground. The Berliner…
Understanding the Wall: How the Berlin Wall divided a nation
Three decades after the so-called ‘Peaceful Revolution’ toppled the German Democratic Republic, or East Germany, people are celebrating the anniversary of its climax — the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989. More time has passed since the Wall came down than the nearly three decades it stood, but painful memories associated with…
Art installation sends ‘wishes’ fluttering over post-Wall Berlin
Freely moving in the wind, independent, yet seemingly in harmony, 30-thousand ribbons dance in front of the Brandenburg Gate, Germany’s most visible symbol of unity. The vision of American artist Patrick Shearn and his studio Poetic Kinetics, a massive public art display drapes the setting for one of Germany’s biggest celebrations in years — the…
How to make the most out of a journalism fellowship
For journalists, a fellowship can provide unmatched mid-career professional development and opportunities for meaningful personal growth. Having completed fellowships with the RIAS Berlin Commission and the East-West Center, I was recently invited to share my own experiences in a panel discussion at RTDNA/SPJ’s annual ‘Excellence in Journalism’ conference. These international reporting experiences required a significant…
Reporter’s Notes: Lessons learned in Germany
As I stepped off the platform onto my train to the Frankfurt Airport, my world seemed to transform into a slow motion flood of memories. After three weeks in Germany as a fellow with the RIAS Berlin Commission, this life experience had just become my standard by which all others will be measured. Gazing out…
Why the Cologne Cathedral is Germany’s most-visited destination
The Cologne Cathedral, a symbol of Christianity’s influence through the ages, is the most-visited destination in Germany. Situated along the shores of the river Rhine, the church is also home to the shrine of the Magi, making it one of the most significant pilgrimage destinations for believers. After the remains of the Magi were transferred…
Ministry reaches English-speaking pilgrims marking 500th anniversary of Protestant Reformation
As Christians around the world mark the 500th anniversary of the start of the Protestant Reformation, an English-language ministry is reaching out to the thousands of visitors making a pilgrimage to Germany. On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther, a German monk and professor of Bible studies at Leucorea University in Wittenberg, Germany, is said to…
WATCH: Day of German Unity 2017
Mainz, Germany was selected to host the national Tag der Deutschen Einheit (Day of German Unity) observance on October 3, 2017. Click here to watch.
Germans take to social media to create traditions for national holiday
Germans have reason to celebrate Tuesday as the country marks 27 years since East and West Germany were peacefully reunified, forming the Federal Republic of Germany. Though the Berlin Wall fell in November 1989, the task of joining two countries didn’t go into effect until nearly a year later, with the adoption of the German…
WATCH: Inside Europe’s largest cathedral
With its iconic spires, the Cologne Cathedral has the largest façade of any church in the world. Click here to take a look inside.
Europe’s largest cathedral steps up security amid international terrorism threats
Amid a wave of terror attacks abroad, steps are being taken to protect visitors to Germany’s biggest tourist destination, the Cologne Cathedral. In August, police and the City of Cologne agreed to make closures near the historic church in response to the van attack in Barcelona, Spain, which killed 13 people. According to the Cathedral’s…
Pay to pray: Understanding Germany’s church tax
A so-called church tax in Germany may be behind a steady decline in the European nation’s church membership numbers. The Pew Research Center, a non-profit, non-partisan public opinion group based in Washington, DC, cites the tax as a factor behind an exodus of Germans officially leaving their religious communities. Germany is among several European countries…
WATCH: History and transparency converge in Germany’s Bundestag building
Built in 1894, Germany’s Reichstag building now features a glass dome symbolizing transparency in government. Click here to watch a tour.
WATCH: Touring Germany by high-speed train
Planes, trains, & automobiles — I did it all to travel across Germany. Click here for the spectacular view from the Deutsche Bahn ICE train!
WATCH: The Berlin Wall — a silent witness to history
A section of the Berlin Wall still stands to illustrate the division created for decades until 1989. Click here to watch.
Post-war American radio station in Berlin lives on in trans-Atlantic exchange program
Even though history has outlived the iconic German radio station RIAS, its legacy lives on in the form of a trans-Atlantic exchange program for journalists in the United States and Germany. The program is named for the radio station RIAS, or Radio In the American Sector, which was founded by the U.S. in 1946. After…
WATCH: Inside the world’s most ‘acoustically perfect’ building
Click the video below for a look around what’s considered the world’s most acoustically advanced building.
Lane Luckie 