Mission Statement

To keep alive Valery P. Chkalov’s dream – read to the nation over NBC Radio from the balcony of the Marshall House in Vancouver, Washington in 1937 – that like the waters of the Columbia and Volga Rivers, which flow peacefully on the same planet and eventually contribute to the same world ocean, "…the peoples of Russia and the USA should live peacefully on this same planet and with cooperative work beautify this ocean of human life."

The Chkalov Cultural Exchange Committee will work to bring Americans and Russians together in peace and friendship and promote American-Russian understanding through social, cultural, athletic, educational, business, and governmental activities and contacts among citizens of the states of Oregon, Washington, and Russia.