Friday, December 2nd to Sunday, December 4,th was a time of education, exploration and FUN for some members of the Scouts of Anguilla. The camp was held at the Adrian T. Hazell Primary School and attracted scouts between the ages of 13 to 22. Sessions began on Friday evening with orientation, the introduction of camp rules, group dynamics activity based on communication and games.
Saturday morning the group was off to an early start at 5:30 with a nature walk through the Back Street area in South Hill. During the morning on Saturday they learnt how to use their neckerchiefs (scarves) as bandages, perform Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) to save lives and cook their lunch. Saturday afternoon they journeyed on a hike through Sachasses-Katouche area and ended up on the beach in Crocus Bay where they built rafts using logs of wood and floaters, and tested them in the water.
The group joined the worship service at the Maranatha Methodist Church in Blowing Point on Sunday morning. After church the group hadlunch, cleaned up the camp site and departed at 2:00 pm.
For some of the scouts, this was something new and different as it was their first camp. Preparation and cooking of all their meals, and cleaning up after, allowed them to display, for the first time, a level of independence. For the senior and more experienced scouts, they were able to display their leadership skills as they took responsibility for ensuring that the participants managed their time, and followed through on assigned tasks. It was a weekend of “Rising early, having fun during the day, and falling asleep in the wee hours of the morning”.
The campers would like to express thanks to the leaders and other resource persons from the Anguilla Red Cross who facilitated the sessions. They would also like other young people to join them as scouts, as they learn skills that will be useful to them throughout their lives.
-Contributed