News Archive
District Sixers Camp 15th/16th March 2008
What a weekend to pick! I suppose the best you could say was that it wasn't too cold. It was certainly wet. I popped up to Garners Field to have a look at was going on and was met by lots of smiling faces from sixers and leaders alike.
They were wet, outdoors and happy. When I asked them if they had enjoyed the weekend I got an emphatic YES.
Thank-you sixers for joining in so well, making new friends and looking as if you were enjoying all the new experiences.
Thank-you leaders, cooks, parents and anyone else involved. I understand that as it was such a success it will happen again next year. Tell those cub scouts who might be sixers in 2009 not to miss out.
Frank Kitchener, DC
HoHo Comes to Haslemere District
1st Haslemere came to the rescue the week before the Jamboree when Scouts from Switzerland found themselves with nowhere to stay following a mix up with a booking at a local school. The Scouts spent several days camped out in their Scout & Guide HQ.
The District also helped out Guildford West District, providing beds for 8 Taiwan Scouts who stayed in Haslemere, Grayshott and Fernhurst. Guildford District organised a trip on the Wey Navigations & a visit to the Guildhall where they were able to see memorabilia relating to Lord Baden-Powell.
Karen McGowan at Grayshott sent the following message to Guildford West:
“I am so glad that you had not found enough beds because my children and I had an absolutely wonderful experience with the 4 girls who stayed here. I could not believe that they cried when they left, but they go on with very full bellies and knowledge of how to make rhubarb crumble, and we have invitations to Taiwan.
“I wished that we had had even just one more day to show them more of English life”, a statement reiterated by all involved in putting them up.
If any of you reading this ever get the opportunity to put up foreign scouts it’s definitely worth while doing, so don’t miss the chance.
Yu-Hsiang Cheng and Wei-Cheng Liao at the Gibbet, Hindhead
Sunrise Ceremony
Haslemere Scout District’s Sunrise hike to celebrate the scout movement’s centenary was a huge success.
It was exactly 100 years ago, in August 1907, that Lord Baden-Powell blew his kudu horn at 8.00am at the first scout camp on Brownsea Island.
On the day of the centenary, 70 people left Fernhurst and hiked up to Temple of the Winds on Blackdown.
Acting Scout District Chaplain, Tony Roake, from Fernhurst Parish, gave a talk to the beavers, cubs and scouts on renewing, reviewing and reflecting.
The two members explained to the group what scouting meant to them.
One was John Martin who has been part of the scout movement for over 60 years, and then one of the younger members of the group, Catriona Gibbon gave her perspective of what scouting meant to her.
At exactly 8am, scout David Buchanan blew the trumpet and district commissioner, Frank Kitchener renewed the scouting promise.
Then it was back to Fernhurst scout hut for bacon sandwiches.
Organiser of the event, Sue Gibbon said: “The weather was fantastic. Like our colleagues on Brownsea Island, we wanted to be mimicking everything at the same time.
“It was happening all over the world, so if anyone was on holiday they could attend by checking the website to see where they could go”.
Next year it is Fernhurst Scouts turn to celebrate 100 years, as they were one of the first scout groups in the country.
Haslemere Cubs marked the centenary by spending four nights camping near Burley, in the New Forest, and the theme for the trip was the classic Jungle Book story, an appropriate source as scout leaders are named after characters from the book.
During the trip they visited Brownsea Island, the focal point of the global celebrations.
The trip culminated with the cubs renewing their promises at the highest point in the New Forest and performing an investiture for their newest member.
Elaine Clement said: “It has been a very good few days and we are proud that we were able to join in on the celebrations and hope that our cubs will remember that they were also part of this historic time in the scouting calendar.”
Source: The Haslemere Herald, 10th August 2007
At the same time, Scouts from Hindhead and Grayshott were enjoying a similar event at the Gibbet in Hindhead. The DC Frank Kitchener said: “Other Groups, including Grayshott and 1st Hindhead climbed Gibbet Hill but alas, we couldn't see each other - too many trees in the way!”
Diary Dates
A new Diary Dates section has been added to the site to give details of forthcoming events. If you know of any events which should be listed here, feel free to send me an email and I'll add them to the diary.
Members Page Updated
The members page has been updated with a new District Directory for 2007, as well as the January 2007 issue of Twiglets and the November 2006 Activities Newsletter.
