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City of Auckland Represented in Pasadena’s Celebrated Rose Parade®

Themed Float “Making Connections” Celebrating Los Angeles Sister Cities is Sponsored by Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board


Los Angeles, Calif…(December 26 [PST], 2012)…The city of Auckland and five other international cities will be featured in Pasadena’s world-renowned annual Rose Parade® on a themed floral float celebrating Los Angeles’ Sister Cities relationships, hosted by Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board.

Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board’s entry into the annual parade is entitled “Making Connections” and features a rendering of the LAX Bradley West expansion that will open in March, 2013. The float’s visual theme is based on Dr. Seuss’ “Oh the Places You’ll Go.” The Sister Cities of Los Angeles signpost will be prominently displayed on the float with six riders representing Auckland, New Zealand; Guangzhou, China; Mexico City, Mexico; Berlin, Germany; Salvador, Brazil; and Nagoya, Japan.

Los Angeles and Auckland have been Sister Cities since 1971.

Greg Langdon (Titchener), formerly of Devonport, Auckland, owner of TENNIS 101, a tennis instruction company in Lake Forest, California and a member of the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) for more than 20 years, will be the float rider representing Auckland.

The 124th Rose Parade® presented by Honda themed “Oh, the Places You'll Go!" will take place in Pasadena on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 at 8:00 a.m. (PST) featuring spirited marching bands from throughout the U.S., majestic floral floats and high-stepping equestrian units.

Jane Goodall, DBE, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace, will serve as the Grand Marshal of the 2013 Tournament of Roses® festivities.

The much anticipated annual event will be seen in more than 220 international territories and countries around the world. The Rose Parade® will be broadcast in New Zealand on TVNZ (Digital).

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About the Rose Parade®:

This uniquely American event began as a promotional effort by Pasadena's distinguished Valley Hunt Club. In the winter of 1890, the club members brainstormed ways to promote the "Mediterranean of the West." They invited their former East Coast neighbors to a mid-winter holiday, where they could watch games such as chariot races, jousting, foot races, polo and tug-of-war under the warm California sun. The abundance of fresh flowers, even in the midst of winter, prompted the club to add another showcase for Pasadena's charm: a parade would precede the competition, where entrants would decorate their carriages with hundreds of blooms. The Tournament of Roses was born.

The Rose Parade®’s elaborate floats now feature high-tech computerized animation and exotic natural materials from around the world. Although a few floats are still built exclusively by volunteers from their sponsoring communities, most are built by professional float building companies and take nearly a year to construct. The year-long effort pays off on New Year’s morning, when millions of viewers around the world enjoy the Rose Parade.

The 124th edition of the Rose Parade® (often referred to as the "Rose Bowl Parade") broadcasts live in the US on ABC, Hallmark Channel, HGTV, KTLA (Tribune), NBC, RFD-TV and Univision. The Rose Parade® is also seen in more than 220 international territories and countries.

http://www.tournamentofroses.com/TheRoseParade.aspx

About Sister Cities of Los Angeles, Inc.:

Sister Cities of Los Angeles, Inc. is a network of 25 Sister Cities and three Friendship Cities on six continents: Athens, Greece; Auckland, New Zealand; Beirut, Lebanon; Berlin, Germany; Bordeaux, France; Busan, South Korea; Eilat, Israel; Giza, Egypt; Guangzhou, China; Ischia, Italy; Jakarta, Indonesia; Kaunas, Lithuania; Łódź, Poland (Friendship City); London, U.K. (Friendship City); Lusaka, Zambia; Makati, Philippines; Manchester, U.K. (Friendship City); Mexico City, Mexico; Mumbai, India
Nagoya, Japan; St. Petersburg, Russia; Salvador, Brazil; San Salvador, El Salvador;
Split, Croatia; Taipei, Taiwan; Tehran, Iran; Vancouver, Canada; Yerevan, Armenia.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower created the U.S. Sister Cities program in 1956 to build global cooperation, promote cultural understanding, and stimulate economic development among cities throughout the world. The City of Los Angeles Sister City program was founded three years later in 1959 with partnerships in Nagoya, Japan and Eilat, Israel. Today, Sister Cities of Los Angeles Inc. promotes international relations, trade, cultural exchange, and peaceful relationships with 25 sister cities and three friendship cities on six continents.

Through a variety of programs, Sister Cities of Los Angeles, Inc. creates opportunities for the officials and citizens of the 25 cities to explore each city’s culture and economy and effect real change at municipal, educational, business, professional, and technical levels. Building "People To People" Relationships is the foundation of every Sister Cities of Los Angeles program.

http://sistercitiesofla.com/

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Gordon Campbell: On Failures Of Care For Those With Mental Disabilities

Hard to imagine a more disturbing insight into the treatment of the vulnerable than the Health Ministry report on Te Roopu Taurima o Manukau. The Ministry has found that the country’s only kaupapa Maori intellectual disability residential care provider has been “seriously dysfunctional.”

The ministry says the business has failed to recruit and retain quality staff – and says the kaimahi (caregivers) that have been employed are seriously unsuitable for the job, lacking basic knowledge. But Te Roopu Taurima o Manukau doesn’t get all the blame. The report says there’s a significant gap under disability laws to ensure there’s oversight by qualified clinical professionals. More>>