Japanese sister city delegation arrives today

PALMER — This morning, 21 Palmer-Saroma Sister City delegates from Saroma, Japan arrive in the Mat-Su.

To celebrate the 35th anniversary of this special friendship, Palmer will host these visitors from Saroma July 10-16. Community members are invited to join in the celebration by attending any of the following community events:

• Friday Flings — Taiko drumming performance and Saroma delegation welcome. The welcome will occur at noon today, and drummers from the Anchorage-based Tomodachi Daiko group will perform at 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.

• Bilingual worship service at 11 a.m., Sunday at the Palmer United Protestant Church, also known as the “church of 1,000 logs,” 713 S. Denali St.

• Community picnic/potluck at Matanuska River Park in Palmer — bring a chair and a dish to share with delegation members and Mat-Su residents from 6 to 8 p.m., July 15.

And don’t forget to try Arkose Brewery’s new, seasonal “Sister City Saison.” The highly carbonated, fruity and spicy ale is made with Belgian Saison yeast, orange peel, lemon peel, ginger, white pepper, sesame seeds and raspberry puree. Available for a limited time.

To find out more about the Sister City Program, visit cityofpalmer.org, and click on the Sister City Program link, or join the Palmer Saroma Kai Facebook group to receive regular sister city updates.