Tlalnepantla, Mexico 
Wichita's Sister Cities affiliation with Tlalnepantla, Mexico originated when the Presidente Municipal (Mayor) of Tlalnepantla visited Wichita in the fall of 1973. Two weeks later, the Mayor of Wichita, accompanied by a City Commissioner, returned the visit. The Wichita Board of City Commissioners approved the affiliation on October 16, 1973. In turn, the affiliation was approved by Tlalnepantla on February 3, 1974.
In February of 1975, a replica of Blackbear Bosin's Keeper of the Plains was presented to the city of Tlalnepantla, and is now stands in "Wichita Plaza".
The highlight of the Wichita-Tlalnepantla relationship had been from the very beginning, the public high school student exchanges in cooperation with the Sister Cities Advisory Board and the Wichita Public School System. Week-long reciprocal home-stays were held annually, one in the fall and one in the spring.
Through our Sister Cities affiliation, Tlalnepantla has been the beneficiary of ambulances, medical supplies and equipment, and of financial aid following act-of-God tragedies. Additionally, they received a few "retired" fire trucks, two of which have been named "Wichita" and "Kansas".
Official visits by the Mayors of both cities, along with their delegations, continue on an annual basis.
In May of 2003, the first group of three cyclists and a two-man support vehicle arrived in Wichita on bicycles. They rode 1,642 miles in 13 days for the love of this sport and to be in our River Festival Parade. In May of 2004 the group returned, this time with four cyclists and 2 men in the support vehicle. Three of the cyclists, Arturo, Luis and Jose ran the two mile race in the River Run the following day, and Arturo placed 24th in the race. See our photo gallery.
On May 27, 2004, we celebrated a very special relationship with this city and one of our residents. Twelve years ago, our board sent Paul Enegren, then a junior in high school, to spend a month in Tlalnepantla. He loved his host family and they loved him. As he was preparing for his wedding, he invited two of his former host brothers to be in his wedding and they accepted, bringing with them their spouses and children. In all, twenty nine people from Tlalnepantla came to Wichita to attend his wedding. Our board hosted a reception in honor of those wedding guests.
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Photo Gallery Mexican photos