Winona’s sister city in Japan recognizes former WAPS teacher

(KWNO)-An amazing posthumous honor for a long-time WAPS teacher. Winona International Friendship Association ambassadors attended the unveiling in Misato, Japan on Tuesday of a memorial to Joe Lepley. Lepley was a special education teacher who was integral to the success of Winona-Misato cultural exchanges for two decades. The memorial faces the Princes Winona statue gifted to Misato by Winona. Lepley passed away in 2022.

Courtesy WAPS

A plaque on the memorial, written in both Japanese and English, says that Lepley “helped many students in Misato develop an interest in a multicultural society, deepen their understanding, and build a foundation for their growth into an internationally minded person.”