After over twelve months of planning, preparation and promotion Beachmere’s 150th Birthday Celebrations were put on hold with the introduction of the Covid-19 restrictions.
A full weekend of events and activities had been planned, with arrangements now being made for a Back to Beachmere weekend in May 2021, which will incorporate all the activities scheduled.
One of the Sesquicentenary projects, and part of the community celebrations which was not postponed, was the release of the book Beachmere – Then and Now.
This is a compilation of over 150 stories providing a history of events and happenings in Beachmere over the past 150 years. Sourced from previous community publications, and gathered from personal interviews, they are all contributions by residents of, and visitors to, Beachmere. The book was compiled by local resident Karen Wallwork and published by another local, Chris Sutton.
Karen Wallwork found copies of The Beachmere Whisper which was a local monthly newsletter produced between 1988 and 1997. Locals would contribute stories, poems and recipes to the Whisper and businesses would pay to advertise which helped with production costs. Luckily, Community Hall committee member, Gwen Mitchener had been keeping boxes of copies of the Whisper which Karen used as just one resource for the many stories in the book.
Beryl Doel was one of the original editors and was delighted to receive a copy of the new book Beachmere – Then and Now.
The initial print run of “pre-orders” sold out the very first weekend it was made available and follow up orders have been just as strong. Copies of Beachmere – Then and Now can be ordered through the BANG website or by emailing info@bang.org.au.
The Back to Beachmere weekend is now planned for 14 to 16 May 2021, but locals will be honoured with an “official” book launch event in the coming months.