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Australian couple experiences small town life in America

By ROWENA PLETT

Staff writer

A trip that originally was planned by Australians Kerry and Jill Harrison to share in a granddaughter's first birthday coincidentally expanded to include Chingawassa Days and the Little River Band concert. They are from Newcastle, New South Wales, and are in town visiting their daughter Leanne.

Leanne is the wife of Kelly Wonser. The couple met during a summer camp in Minnesota for special kids. They live at 150 Eastmoor Drive. Their daughter Logan's birthday was Tuesday.

This was the first trip outside of Australia for the Harrisons. Kerry said their American experience so far has been "absolutely fantastic." He especially enjoyed a trip to Dodge City and the Old West.

The Harrisons were thrilled to be able to attend a Little River Band concert. They said the band originated in Australia, and they grew up listening to their music.

Australia is as large as the 50 United States combined but has only seven states. Newcastle is the second largest city in New South Wales, with a population of 450,000.

Wineries are common in the hilly area where the Harrisons live. It is bordered by the ocean to the east and snow-capped mountains to the west. The climate is similar to Kansas' climate without the extremes.

Their area has dairies and also produces wheat, corn, and sheep. Lamb is the basic meat in Australia, and kangaroos are as common as deer are in America.

Kerry Harrison works in communications in a police department. Jill works for a national rental car company.

They have two other daughters, one son, and four other grandchildren.

The couple is impressed with the friendliness of the people in this small town. They were introduced to the crowd Friday evening at the main stage.

"Marion is a beautiful town," Kerry said.

They read the Marion County Record online and plan to keep in touch with Margo Yates at the Marion Chamber of Commerce.

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