The City of Tyler will welcome a delegation from its sister city of Yachiyo, Japan March 25-30, 2026.
The delegation of 15 representatives will receive an official greeting at Tyler City Hall at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 26.
A welcome ceremony and gift exchange will be led by Mayor Don Warren, members of the Tyler City Council, and City officials. The visit marks more than three decades of friendship between the two cities, which first established their sister city partnership with twinning ceremonies in 1992.
Following their welcome at City Hall, the delegation will participate in meetings with Tyler Junior College and the University of Texas at Tyler, UT Health- Tyler and CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Hospital, as well as explore several of Tyler’s cultural and community landmarks that showcase what the city has to offer.
The Japanese delegation’s itinerary includes cultural tours, local meetings, and opportunities to engage with residents and community leaders.
The group will also attend the activities related to Tyler’s Azalea & Spring Flower Trail, the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden, and the East Texas Symphony Orchestra’s 90th Anniversary.
This month’s itinerary also includes a dedication ceremony for a memorial bench honoring the late Tony Tadasa, who passed away in 2021. Born in Japan, Tadasa came to the United States to study at Tyler Junior College and became a champion for citizen diplomacy as one of the most dedicated members of the Tyler Sister Cities organization. Tadasa’s enthusiasm was critical to the long-term strength of the partnership between the two cities.
Over the course of the past three decades, a strong relationship between the two cities has developed resulting in a coveted trip rotation schedule shared between the two cities, usually coinciding with the rose festival activities occurring in Tyler and in Yachiyo. These biennial trips aim to increase collaborations between both cities by keeping city contacts current and bringing representatives from business and educational entities in both cities together.
This month’s visit will mark the 30th official delegation trip of the partnership, with Tyler and Yachiyo having visited each other on 15 occasions. These have resulted in more than 780 community members from both cities collaborating via our Sister City relationship.
Additional delegations have also traveled between Yachiyo and Tyler, including visits by the Yachiyo Boys and Girls Choir, the Tyler Junior College Dance Team, as well as visits by various representatives from both cities. As a result, many economic, educational and business partnerships have formed.
Education has always been the foundation of this Sister City relationship, beginning with two East Texas teachers traveling to Yachiyo City in 1991 to work in junior high schools alongside JET teachers as a one-year pilot program. Since then, 49 teachers from East Texas have lived in Yachiyo through the Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) program, working with the Board of Education, team teaching with over 300 Yachiyo teachers to date.
The Sister City partnership has also centered on a shared passion for the outdoors and roses. While Tyler is home to America’s largest public rose garden, Yachiyo’s beautiful Keisei Rose Garden houses a famous café, selectively using natural ingredients, including their roses, in teas and pastries. The Keisei Rose Garden received the Award of Garden Excellence at the 17th World Convention of Rose Societies in 2015 and houses over 10,000 roses of 1,500 varieties.
Yachiyo City conducts many of the same activities occurring annually in Tyler, many of which are centered around their Rose Garden.
Members of the community and Tyler Sister Cities members wanting a detailed itinerary or wanting to participate in the visit may email info@TylerSisterCities.org.
For more information about the Tyler Sister Cities program, go to https://tylersistercities.org/our-sister-cities/yachiyo-japan/.
Tyler Sister Cities 