2LT Paul Cocker NZ Army Officer came to visit

2LT Cocker With the scouts after a challenge to put up his one man tent

On the 29th of May, our scout night was a busy one. First up we got to invest two new scouts in to our troop and present three Bronze Awards, the first step on the ladder to Queen Scout Awards. We were lucky enough to have these presented by New Zealand Army Officer 2LT Paul Cocker. 2LT Cocker then talked to us about his experiences in the Army and how he prepared for expeditions in the various places he had been posted to. He also talked about how his scouting helped him in his army career. We would like to thank 2LT Cocker for giving up his Tuesday evening to come and speak with us.   There are full quality photos of the youth being invested and presented with their badges available from Henry. Hope to have them on the website in the next couple of days

 

Oh Yea, Oh Yea – read all about it….

The term is well underway with planning for the Hillary-Tenzing challenge, learning about our local environment and the universe.  It’s great to see the keas, cubs, scouts and venturers enjoying themselves.

At the same time, our ranks are swelling and the committee is finalizing plans for the improvement of our hall, upgrading some of our kit and helping our youth attending major scouting events.

To achieve what we want to achieve we need a little bit more help from you.  Your commitment doesn’t have to be lots (a few hours a term to supervise a badge, share a skill at an evening session, help out at a fundraiser, take your term on the cleaning roster) but could be a little more (helping out on the committee, co-ordinating an activity).

scrub-a-dub

There is now a cleaning roster pinned up on the notice board just inside the door of the hall.  Term 2 is being managed by Scouts.  Term 3 will be Cub parents and families.

Cleaning only takes about 30 mins if we all take a regular turn and ensures a good environment for our youth.

Please see a leader on the week of your duty for the key.

insurance money to spend!

The bad news is that we had quite few tents damaged a month ago in a storm.  The good news is that we have received an insurance payout to buy some replacement kit!

If you’ve got some ideas for what purchases we need, see the quartermaster…

in the quartermaster’s store

… speaking of which – we’re  delighted to announce that the newest parent member on the committee is Andrew Simes!  Father of scout Liam, Andrew has agreed to be our Quartermaster.  Email him at quartermaster [at] brooklynscouts.org.nz

Well done Andrew, welcome and we’re all looking forward to having someone keep us in shape over kit and tents.

It’s not all about mud: Photography School 2012

In the second week of the July school holidays, 20 lucky scouts and venturers (who can rustle up the all inclusive $450 fee) will get to spend a week with expert photographers, honing and refining their skills.

The National Scout photography school is the only one of its type in New Zealand and it is for all Scouts and Venturers interested in digital photography. For a whole week the students are immersed in the fun and exciting world of photography. It is headed by professional photographers with the assistance of keen amateur photographers who all volunteer their time to enable young people to realise their dreams.

This year’s course will be local – at Brookfield.