Every deb in Bega knows the name Jan Watling.
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Last weekend, Ms Watling helped debut 19 young ladies at the Bega Showgrounds pavilion for the last time as event coordinator.
The deb veteran is kicking off her heels after hosting the event for generations of Bega teenagers .
“I’ve lost count of how many I’ve done,” she said.
“I have run at least 18, but I’ve been helping for longer, someone told me the other day it was well over 30 years.”
Dressmaking is Ms Watling’s favourite part of the debutante ball, having made dresses for her daughters, granddaughters and other debutantes.
She particularly loves to see dresses reappear across generations. Her eldest daughter’s dress has been reworn a number of times.
But this is not the case for every dress.
“My youngest daughter made her dress in 1988, which I thought was just beautiful,” she said.
“But when my granddaughter tried it on she just laughed at the puffy sleeves, so styles come and go.”
Ms Watling said the debutante ball stayed modern by mixing traditional dances, like the Canadian Barn Dance and the Lambeth walk with modern dances, like Footloose.
Ms Watling loves to see the young dancers develop during their dance training in the lead up to the ball.
“Some of the kids come in with two left feet, but it’s amazing to see how far they come, especially the boys,” she said.
While the focus is on young ladies, Ms Watling said the boys have just as much fun and even come back for “re-runs” in following years.
She particularly loves to see the page boys and flower girls return as teenagers.
“I make the flower girl and page boy outfits, so it’s pretty special to have a flower girl return and be able to help her with her deb dress instead,” Ms Watling said.
She said she has been blessed to meet so many wonderful young people and be invited into such a special part of their teenage life.
“I’ve met families over generations, working with kids, their parents and grandparents,” she said.
“It’s so much enjoyment but a lot of work too. A deb would finish on Friday and I would start planning again on Saturday,” she said.
Ms Watling will hand over to a new coordinator at the Bega AP&H Society. She said new energy and ideas will allow the Bega debutante ball to continue to flourish.