The Bega/Littleton Sister City Exchange, Inc.
- A Brief History
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| Mr Brian Warby (left) teaches Houston Waring how to hold a cricket bat - Bega 1976 |
In 1951, the U.S. State Department and U.S. Information Agency initiated the making of the motion
picture, "Small Town Editor", for use in foreign countries to encourage a rural press to supplement the usually
government controlled news. This film, made in Littleton, Colorado, U.S.A., featured Houstoun Waring, editor of the Littleton
Independent, who had achieved national recognition for his editorials on foreign affairs.
W.B. (Curly) Annabel of the Bega District News
in Bega, New South Wales, Australia, saw the film, which dealt with the people, goals and production of the Littleton Independent.
Entranced by the similarity of Bega and his newspaper with Littleton and its newspaper, Annabel began a correspondence with
Waring in December 1954 and visited the Waring family the next summer.
When President Eisenhower urged sister-city relationships,
Annabel and Waring decided in 1960 to form a bond between the two cities. This led to an invitation from Annabel for the Waring's
to attend Bega Week in February, 1961. While there, they consummated the association between Bega and Littleton, communities
9,000 miles/15,000 kilometres apart, to become the first Australian and U.S.A. sister cities.
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| Mr Curly Annabel (centre) seated in back during a Cavalcade of Welcome - Littleton 1961 |
In August 1961, Annabel brought four young people (Bega high-school students) to Littleton for Western
Welcome Week. Thereafter, the custom was established for Littleton to send a delegation to Bega on the first and sixth years
of the decade and for Bega to send a delegation to Littleton on the third and eighth years. The March 2001 Littleton delegation
visit was the 9th official visit to Bega.
The delegates
are hosted by member families and get a taste of home life and community activities in addition to tours of the immediate
area. A high point of each visit is the International Civic Dinner attended by the delegates, government representatives of
both countries, members of various civic organizations and other community members.
Over the years since inception many Littleton and Bega members have returned to visit friends made on previous trips.
The relationships between members of the sister-city groups have grown over the years. All of this having started through
the efforts of the two visionary community leaders - Houstoun Waring (1901 - 1997) and Curly Annabel (1907 - 1999).
