Fears have been raised that Dundee’s link with the French city of Orleans could die out if more volunteers cannot be found.
The Dundee-Orleans Twinning Association says its membership is tumbling, meaning the organisation is struggling to maintain links between the two cities.
The official twinning link was Dundee’s first, established more than 70 years ago in 1946 in mutual appreciation for the harbouring of French submarines in the city during the Second World War.
An official association was later set up in 1996, helping to stage events and exchange visits.
President and treasurer Sally Carus said many of the association’s older members had stepped down in recent years.
She said: “Recently I’ve been struggling to keep on top of things on my own. I’ve only been doing this for three or four years but we really need more members.
“If there were more of us we could probably do a lot more to keep up these links.
“One of the most important things from twinning relationships is that it can help people visit other countries and learn about different cultures — even if a trip just lasts a week.
“I think it’s really important we keep our connections with other countries.”
Orleans is just one of four twin cities — the others being Würzburg in Germany, Nablus in Palestine, and Alexandria in the USA, with each having its own twinning association.
One of the Dundee-Orleans Twinning Association’s recent efforts saw them make use of a bursary last year to help send a Dundee & Angus College student to the northern French city.
Magdalena McGregor spent four weeks learning from local french pastry chefs and said the trip had been a “real boost” to her confidence.
Sally is eager to ensure young people in the future don’t miss out on similar opportunities.
She said: “This bursary would have expired if we hadn’t managed to find a use for it and that would have been a real shame.
“If these bursary opportunities come up again in the future we want to be in a position to make the most of it.
“We would like to provide the opportunity for more young people to discover links with Orleans — as well as help host visitors.
“The twinning link has existed for over 70 years and we need to keep the links alive.”
Lord Provost Ian Borthwick added: “An approach was made by the association to have a meeting and I’m very keen to discuss their difficulties.
“I would be most disappointed if the association wasn’t able to continue its good work.
“Every time I have met with them, I’ve always been impressed with their commitment and good work.
“It seems the falling number of members is the main difficulty and so I would encourage others to come forward and help out if they can.”
