In the beginning….
Here’s the thing about Scouting…..it grows. I started out as a Cub Scout in 1978 in a small village Group near Falmouth in Cornwall. My auntie ran the Pack and to her I’m eternally grateful for giving me the start that would lead me here, a few years later. There have been loads of changes, a few questionable, but mainly good. When I started Scouting the Chief Scout was Major General Michael Walsh, a serving military officer. I met him on my first camp as a Scout at Nine Ashes, in Cornwall (remember that bit…..its shows up later).
Scouts
From there I progressed through being an Assistant Patrol Leader, then the dizzy heights of a Patrol Leader (the most difficult job in Scouting), and then for a short while into what were then Ventures. We all look back and think of our younger selves, but what do you remember? I remember the camping, learning to rock climb, learning how to skin and cook rabbits, long hikes across open moorland, canoeing, sailing, and the feeling that I just belonged with Scouting. Anyone else with me here?
Leaders
All our leaders are volunteers. The don’t get paid. They don’t have any more time than anyone else. They have families. They have full time jobs. They are all fully committed to giving the young people of Petersfield district the same memories that I have. They turn up when they can to run evenings. Mostly that is on a weekly basis, but there is a new deal slowly filtering through.
Media
In the media this week there has been a massive drive for people who have maybe a few hours a month to give up. Ladies and Gentlemen I give you ‘the best non-paid job in the world’…. being a leader. So how can you get involved in this fantastic adventure? It just so happens we have some vacancies available at the moment. We’re looking for skills instructors. What is your skill? Can you plan a menu, fix a car engine, build a website, do you like to walk the dog at weekends, visit national trust properties or theme parks? If you can do any of these then we want to hear from you. If you can’t do any of them, what can you do? We have many vacancies, come write your own job description…..
Whats in it for you?
As with many job interviews uniform and training provided. We will interview you, can carry out some background checks. We will get you a first aid certificate. We will support you through a comprehensive hands on training programme. If you don’t want all that but just want to turn up every now and again, that’s fine too. Please give us an hour a MONTH if that’s all you can afford. But the question you may have is ‘what do you get out of it? Fancy caving for a day at just £15. We can do that here. What about sailing, we can do that too. I’ve just come back from a weekend in London playing full size monopoly. The event was aimed at Explorers (14-18 year olds) but there was a Leaders category, so with a team of Leaders from Cornwall I entered.
Long hot summers
And so back to Cornwall. Later this year I will be attending a Jamboree in Cornwall. I’m going full circle back to Nine Ashes, but instead of as a Scout I’m going back to run a Sub Camp of about 250 people. I think that’s progress. There’s a Troop in the district going too. There will be 1000 plus Scouts camping for a week on the edge of Bodmin Moor. They will be surfing, climbing, sailing, but most of all they will be really enjoying themselves. Two other troops from this district will be taking part in a weekend camp in May. Other Troops will be having similar experiences, but we need help in making sure we can carry on doing these things. We need adult help. It doesn’t matter if it’s an hour a week or an hour a month, we would like to hear from you.
I’m going to leave you with a video….. Have a think…. Thank you.