The mayor of Omaha and Carlentini, Sicily, are entering into a Sister City Friendship Agreement, recognizing the century-old connection between the cities and a history of family, faith, culture and tradition.

Carlentini is an Italian city in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily, with a population of about 17,000. Over the past year, three Italian heritage organizations in Omaha — the American Italian Heritage Society, the Santa Lucia Festival Committee, and the Orders of the Sons and Daughters of Italy — helped lay the groundwork for a Sister City agreement. They formed the Sicula Italia Foundation, a nonprofit whose mission is to bring these two cities together.

“Omaha is proud of our vibrant Italian-American community and the strong ties to Carlentini,” Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert, honorary chair of the Omaha Sister Cities Association, said in a news release. “I look forward to expanding and strengthening these important relationships. A Sister City partnership will show us what a small world it really is.”

A friendship agreement provides opportunities for cultural, educational and business partnerships and exchanges and is an initial step that can lead to a formal agreement. The Omaha City Council authorized moving forward with the Sister City process at its Tuesday meeting.

“To say there is a tremendous amount of enthusiasm for this friendship city among the Italian-American community in Omaha would be an understatement,” said Celann LaGreca, chair of the OSCA Carlentini Committee. “The collaboration between the people of Carlentini and Omaha has been remarkable, and technology has made this possible due to international travel difficulties this past year because of COVID-19. We are confident that there will be a rich connection between these cities for years to come.”

The Omaha-Carlentini Friendship Agreement virtual signing ceremony will be held Wednesday at the Durham Museum, recognizing the historic connection between Carlentini and the Union Pacific Railroad. The first immigrants from Carlentini arrived in Omaha in the early 1900s and were attracted to jobs with the railroad.

Two brothers, Joseph and Sebastiano Salerno, were instrumental in helping settle the immigrants in Omaha. Sebastiano Salerno recruited Carlentini residents to come to Omaha, Joseph Salerno opened the Bank of Sicily. 

The Carlentini population led to the development of Omaha’s Little Italy neighborhood with family-owned restaurants, shops, food markets and small businesses.

Today, Italians are the fourth largest ethnic group in Omaha, with more than two-thirds of the population descended from the original Carlentini immigrants.

“Recognition of an official agreement between Omaha and Carlentini is one that is well deserved and will be taken with honor and humility,” said Sheri Kanger, co-director of the Sicula Italia Foundation. “This agreement is a symbol for future generations to support the relationship and continue nurturing the strong ties that our ancestors brought to Omaha over a century ago.”

Omaha has six sister cities: Shizuoka, Japan; Braunschweig, Germany; Siauliai, Lithuania; Naas, Ireland; Xalapa, Mexico; and Yantai, China.  In 2019, a Friendship Agreement was signed with Isigny-Omaha Intercom.

For more information about the Omaha Sister City Association, visit omahasistercities.com.