Greater Shreveport Chamber Welcomes Sister City Delegation from Czech Republic

SHREVEPORT, La. - June 21, 2019 - PRLog -- The Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce is delighted to welcome the Sister City Delegation from the City of Ostrava, Czech Republic on Monday, June 24, 2019. The delegation including Mr. Ivo Vondrak, the Governor of Moravian-Silesian Region and his wife, the Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Armed Forces of the Czech Republic; the Deputy Mayor and Councilman of Ostrava , representatives from the NATO Information Center, the Globsec Institute and Jagello 2000 who coordinate and present the NATO Days International Airshow, will tour Shreveport and Barksdale Air Force Base (BAFB).

Since 2009, members of the 307th and 2nd Bomb wings have flown a B-52 to the NATO Days Air Show in Ostrava, fostering Shreveport and Ostrava to become Sister Cities in 2015. But the two cities have an unlikely and long-standing historical connection. On August 29, 1944 a fleet of B-17 Flying Fortresses from the 2nd Bomb Group, the historic predecessors to Barksdale's 307th and 2nd Bomb Wings, were lost on a bombing mission over Ostrava. Four of the downed crew were aided in their escape back to Allied lines by the citizens of Ostrava. To this day, B-17 crash sites are tended to by local Czech citizens as memorials to the sacrifices of American airmen on behalf of the Czech people.

In the fall of 2018, Greater Shreveport Chamber President Dr. Timothy Magner, accompanied representatives from the 307th BW to Ostrava as the first civic representative from Shreveport to visit. "To accompany members of the 307th and 2nd Bomb Wings to the NATO Days Air Show is to have the honor of witnessing a tremendous example of the impact our local citizen airmen make around the world," said Magner. "Shreveport and Ostrava have a shared history and much in common. We are delighted to welcome this high-level delegation to our community and look forward to continuing to grow our Sister City relationship."

Members of the media are invited to attend any and all of the following events: The arrival of the DV party at Chamber Plaza, 400 Edwards St, at 9:00am, and the welcome breakfast that will commence at 9:20am at the Petroleum Club in downtown Shreveport, where the Honorable Ivo Vondrak, Governor of the Moravian-Silesian Region, will give closing remarks. After breakfast, we welcome you to join the delegation for a tour of the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum, where the Czech flag will be flying for a photo opportunity.

Since its founding in 1910, the mission of the Greater Shreveport Chamber has been to promote economic prosperity, serve as a business advocate, and celebrate the achievements of the Shreveport- Bossier region. With over 1400 members, the GSCC is designated as a 5-Star Accredited Chamber by the US Chamber of Commerce, one of less than 2% of Chambers across the country honored with this distinction.