LARRY JONES HONORED BY SISTER CITIES INTERNATIONAL

SCI President Chuck Stokke and Laverne Johnson, U.S. State Department are shown presenting the Sister Cities International Volunteer of the Year Award to Larry Jones, center, at the annual convention in Atlanta, Georgia in July of 2001. Dr. Jones was the Stillwater Sister Cities Council delegate to the conference. He is a retired professor of engineering at Oklahoma State University and a long-time council member who has made valuable contributions to the programs that connect Stillwater with Kameoka, Japan and fosters friendship with other cultures of the world.

Mary Jean Eisenhower, granddaughter of President Eisenhower who founded SCI, was the keynote speaker at the awards luncheon. In attendance were Larry's wife Kayo and his sons Randy and Richard Jones.

The SCI Annual Awards Program recognizes the work of outstanding sister city programs in the nation. The awards are divided into the categories of: Best Overall, Innovation, Volunteer of the Year, and Disability.

Dr. Jones is a long-time member of the Sister Cities Council and has served several terms as chair and vice chair. He is also a contributing writer for Kameoka Corner, a weekly column for the Stillwater NewsPress. As an active member of the council since 1989, he has contributed to countless sister cities projects for the City of Stillwater, including construction of Japanese gardens in Stillwater. Dr. Jones is a retired professor of engineering at Oklahoma State University. In 1990-92, he served as Assistant Director and taught classes at Oklahoma State University-Kyoto in Stillwater's sister city of Kameoka, Japan.

Sister Cities International is a nonprofit organization that works closely with U.S. communities to develop lasting relationships with counterpart communities in other nations. SCI encompasses citizen diplomats and city officials in more than 3,500 communities in 137 countries. These programs demonstrate to other cities how to incorporate exciting and innovative ideas and exchanges into their own sister city program.