“What is twinning?”  is about the first thing you see on our home page. Twinning is mostly reflected in sharing happy occasions and celebrations between our towns. However, as we all know, life isn’t all about happy events  and there are times when we share with our twin towns the sadder things that happen within our twinning families.

Whether that might be a sad loss, or changes and saying goodbye or whether it is part of a bigger, national picture, as the attacks on our country. We have shared with our French friends when they have been shocked by the attacks made on them in Paris and Nice; we have shared with our German friends when they were attacked in Munich and Berlin.

This message has been received from Valence – it shows that twinning is much more than ‘jollies’ but goes deeper so that we also share in each other’s sadness.

Joy Phillips, Chairman TTA

Received from Francois Richebé, Chairman, Twinning Association, Valence, France:

Nous sommes une fois de plus horrifiés par un acte inqualifiable.

Nous partageons la peine de tous ceux qui sont touchés par ces conséquences.

Nous sommes solidaires du peuple anglais dans ces moments tragiques que le peuple français n’a que trop subits.

Bonne fin de journée malgré tout

Amities

Francois Richebé

Translation:

We are once again more than horrified by such an unimaginable act.

We share the pain of all those touched by its consequences.

We stand in solidarity with the English people in these tragic times that the French people have also suffered.

Enjoy the rest of your day despite everything

With our friendship

Francois Richebé