Scouts and Guides in Anguilla joined their counterparts around the world on Sunday, February 23, in observing Founders Day (for the boys) and Thinking Day (for the girls) in honour of the late Lord and Lady Baden Powell whose joint birthdays were the day before, Saturday, February 22.
The birthday observance is being continued with a series of activities one of which is a fair to be held by the Girl Guides on the grounds of the Ruthwill Auditorium, and a camp for the Scouts at Heritage Village, East End, on Saturday, March 1.
Aside from these activities, this year the Girl Guides in Anguilla, and throughout the world, are celebrating 100 years of Brownie Guiding. Ms Sherrine Sasso, Anguilla’s Guide Commissioner, said that there will be a series of activities to commemorate the Brownie centenary beginning at the end of March and continuing until October this year. She was not certain, but was hopeful, that it would be possible to raise enough funds for a number of the Anguilla Brownies to be sent overseas to participate in at least one of the celebrations.
In the meantime, Mr Othlyn Vanterpool, Commissioner of Scouts, said arrangements were being made for a vigorous training programme for Scout Leaders later this year. The training, outside of Anguilla, will include advanced leadership courses in Dominica and in St Vincent, and an executive course in Panama, in preparation for a re-launching of the Scouts Association in Anguilla. The Scouts have also begun raising funds for a contingent to attend the Scouts Jamboree in Curacao in July this year, as well as for a few members to represent the island at the World Scouts Jamboree in Japan next year.
With a combined membership of 32 million, the Scouts and Guides Movements are regarded as the largest youth organisations throughout the world, although the numbers have been declining over the years. The decline is particularly noticeable in small islands like Anguilla. Efforts towards a membership drive are being made on the island, according to Ms Sasso and Mr Vanterpool. This includes encouraging parents, schools and various churches to enlist their children in the two non-denominational organisations.
Meanwhile, as the membership drive is taking place, the search is on to find replacements for both Ms Sasso who became Anguilla’s youngest Guide Commissioner in 2010, and Mr Vanterpool who has served as Scout Commissioner for twenty years. The two of them are grateful to have had the opportunity, privilege and honour to serve the organisations and are confident that new Commissioners will emerge from among a number of the present leaders.
