Mexican visitors inspire cultural exchanges

A delegation from Springfield’s sister city of Tlaquepaque, Mexico, was in Springfield May 4–9 to experience Midwestern hospitality and exchange ideas about a wide variety of topics.

Part of the goal of the Springfield Sister Cities Association, which set up the recent visit, is to facilitate cultural, economic, technological and informational exchanges.

Those interactions could be branching out in the near future.

Plans are in the works for culinary and medical exchanges between the two communities, where doctors or chefs would swap visits to learn about techniques and ways of doing business.

A soccer exchange, where 11- and 12-year-old boys from Tlaquepaque will visit and play against teams in Springfield, already is established for late June. Springfield Director of Parks & Recreation Dan Kinney said the swap, tentatively set for June 22–27, is about more than just soccer.

“It goes beyond just playing the sport. We’ll do our best to show them American traditions and ways of doing things, and I know the same will apply when they go to Mexico. It’s a great learning experience for everyone involved,” he said.

Mike Williamson, vice president of SSCA and chair of the Tlaquepaque interest group, said understanding other cultures has benefits at home.

“Clearly, we have large Hispanic populations now moving into this area, and it helps if we better understand how those communities work,” Williamson said.

Greene County’s Hispanic population grew to 4,400, approximately 245 percent from 1990 to 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Christian County’s was up about 100 percent, to population 700, during the same time.

Williamson said the exchanges have a direct benefit in terms of developing possible future trade opportunities, as well as the income from visitors who stay in area hotels and eat in area restaurants.

Mexican restaurant Qdoba at Republic and Kansas, for example, doubled its typical sales May 5 when the Tlaquepaque mariachi band Mariachi Juvenil performed on-site, according to Randy Allen, operations manager for Burrito Concepts, Qdoba franchisee.

But Kay Logsdon, president of SSCA and executive director of the Springfield Regional Arts Council, said the benefits go beyond immediate dollars and cents.

“There’s the economic development opportunities as well as travel and tourism,” she said. “It’s about how we begin to share resources through trade, and that’s something the Sister Cities Association is just beginning to look into – how we can initiate business discussions back and forth.”

She added that cultural understanding paves the way for better business relationships between two communities.

“The reason we want minority involvement is that there are so many differing backgrounds and cultures that influence our world that we need to work together and understand those things,” Logsdon said.

There is excitement on both sides of the relationship.

Arturo Magana, proprietor of Quinta Don Jose B&B Hotel in Tlaquepaque, was a member of the delegation that visited Springfield. He said this visit is just the beginning.

“I think that we’re still early on in the development of this relationship,” he said. “My personal expectations call for development in many other areas – business, culture, medical, agricultural. The first step is getting to know each other, and as we accomplish that, we’re going to see how those areas start to flourish.”

Magana added that he was impressed with the friendliness and hospitality of his Springfield hosts, saying the two highlights of the trip for him were the chance for the newly-elected Tlaquepaque government officials to meet Springfield city leaders and the opportunity to see the mariachi band’s performance during Artsfest.

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