By Jennifer Christy
NAP Contributor
Ogaki, Japan delegation and high school students posing in front of City Hall in Beaverton, Oregon. Photo courtesy: Jennifer Christy.
A visiting delegation from Ogaki in Gifu prefecture, Japan, consisted of three Ogaki city officials and 10 Ogaki high school students. The group visited Beaverton, Oregon in October 2025 as part of an ongoing cultural and educational exchange connected to Beaverton’s long-standing Friendly City relationship with Japan.
The visit was an opportunity to formally welcome the delegation to Beaverton and reaffirm the value of international friendship, student exchange, and civic learning. During their visit to City Hall, the delegation met with Beaverton Mayor Lacey Beaty and the mayor’s office staff. The group presented an official letter and gift from the Mayor of Ogaki. Beaty and her staff shared an overview of Beaverton, the role of a mayor in a council-manager form of government, and how the city engages residents and partners locally and internationally.
As part of their broader visit, the delegation also toured the Beaverton Public Safety Center to learn about police services, visited the Patricia Reser Center for the Arts, and participated in an exchange at Sunset High School with students enrolled in Japanese language classes.
