Scout Report 2022-23
We finished up the Summer term of 2022 with activities starting to resume back to normal after Covid and were delighted each section was able to participate in a camp. The group held a fun evening in June to celebrate The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and we were delighted to invite Lyle Quigley, former Scout Leader, along to plant a tree for this celebration.
We held our registration evening in September and were delighted to have had another successful year with a total membership of 64 children. This year we are pleased to announce we re-opened the Squirrel Section under the leadership of Penny, Julie and Judith and we also welcomed Judith Mullan as our new group chairperson. Unfortunately our initial registration evening had to be postponed due to the sad passing of Queen Elizabeth II.
We held our Investiture Service in November in a different format, the whole group came together for a night of fun activities before joining up with family & friends for the Investiture part. Our County Commissioner, Stephanie, came along to invest all our Squirrels, Beavers, Cubs, Scouts & Leaders before leading us in a campfire. A presentation was made to Nikki for receiving her Woodbadge & 5 years’ service, Jason for his 5 years’ service and to Wendy & Jonathan 10 years’ service
In December it was great that we were able to hold our Candlelight Carol Service in the Church again. We were overwhelmed with the fantastic support we received from our Scout families, friends and parishioners. Each year, at the Carol Service, the Scouts do a collection for a charity. This year we decided to help Pens for Kids UK. A massive thank you to everyone who donated pencils / pens. These were forwarded to Pens for Kids UK, to go towards helping young people with their education.
In addition to our weekly meetings and activities our Squirrels and Beavers have a visit from a Doctor, a local author and visited the library. The Beavers went to Beaver Rally Day in Crawfordsburn, attend a County event at Fulton’s’ Pumpkin Patch and took part in a Wild West Camp. The Cubs went to the Share Centre, in Lisnaskea, did some off road biking and surfing and went on their traditional Mystery Day to We Are Vertigo in December. The Scouts & Cubs attended the Rampage at the Jungle with their parents. The Scouts did a back to basic camp in Downhill Forest, completed a night hike at Banager Dam and attended the County Dodgeball Competition, which they won – they then went on to represent the County at NI finals.
In addition to numerous activity and challenge badges, 6 Cubs with their Silver Chief Scouts Awards and 1 Scouts with their Gold Chief Scout Awards (these are the highest awards in their section).