Chinese Consul General Ambassador Huang Ping, bottom left, sits next is Joe Walsh, interim President of Toledo Sister Cities. Rachel Ward, a Perrysburg graduate, and Carter Sheeks, a senior at Perrysburg, sit on the other side of the picnic table. Ward and Sheeks had gone on a trip to China with Perrysburg Chinese teacher Can Tang.
PERRYSBURG — In keeping with the long tradition of “hot dog diplomacy” the World Affairs Council of Northwest Ohio hosted an American cookout for five representatives from the Chinese Consulate in New York City, including Ambassador Huang Ping, Consul General.
The July 22 event was held inthe backyard of the World Affairs Council President Bill Hilt’s family home in Perrysburg.
When asked to plan a program for the Chinese delegation, Hilt recalled that his “best memories from travels abroad were sharing backyard barbeques. After a brief welcome address, there were no more speeches, just mingling and getting to know one another.”
“Hot dog diplomacy” has a famed history. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt created a media frenzy in 1939 when they served backyard hot dogs to KingGeorge VI and Queen Elizabeth. In 1999 President Bill Clinton shared kosher hot dogs with Ehud Barak and Yasser Arafat in Oslo after Middle East peace negotiations. And at his vacation home in Kennebunkport, President George W. Bush served hot dogs to President Nicolas Sarkozy of France in 2007.
The backyard cookout and citizen diplomacy included three students from Perrysburg who had traveled to China with teacher Can Tang, as well as university faculty from Bowling Green State University, Owens Community College, and The University of Toledo.
Other guests included members of the World Affairs Council Board and Sister Cities leadership, plus community members who regularly support the World Affairs Council’s efforts to foster global connections.
The Chinese Consulate delegation was visiting the Toledo area along with another delegation which included the mayor of Nanchong, Toledo’s Sister City.
Hilt explained, “The World Affairs Council’s board coordinated with Toledo Sister Cities International’s leadership to provide the best possible experience for both delegations.”
