President Weekes Honoured to Become First Female Chief Scout In Trinidad and Tobago, the role is a nominal and titular Head of the Association offered to the Head of State. The Chief Scout’s functions are: i. to foster and encourage the Scout Movement in Trinidad and Tobago; ii. to seek to gain and to maintain the highest standards of effective Scouting iii. to sign Warrants of Appointment of all Commissioners; iv. to confer National Scout Awards and Decorations as per the Policy, Organisation and Rules. v. to be the Chairman of the Council.
Calendar of Events May 5 — NLC Training (Chaguanas) 12 — Cub Scout Leaders Meeting (HQ) 12 — Wood Badge Training (HQ) 20 — Scouting for Food Launch / National Day of Caring 21-27 — Scouts Science and Technology Week 26-27 — Cub Scouts’ Science Camp (HQ) President Paula-Mae Weekes
In a letter dated March 29, 2018, Her Excellency, President Paula-Mae Weekes has accepted the role of Chief Scout.
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Responding to National Scout Commissioner, Roger Berkeley, Weekes stated, “The Office of the President remains ready and willing to continue standing with you as you nurture our young men and women into citizens of strong moral character with a commitment to the service of Trinidad and Tobago. The work of the Scout movement over the years is deserving of the highest commendation. I would consider it a privilege and honour to become the first female Chief Scout.” At the closing ceremony of the first international Scout Jamboree in Olympia, London in 1920, B-P was unanimously acclaimed as Chief Scout of the World, a title he held until his death in 1941.
Sir Ellis Clarke served as Chief Scout in his capacity as Governor General between 1972 and 1976, when he became the first President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago Her Excellency, President Paula-Mae Weekes becomes the sixth President to serve as Chief Scout of the Scout Association of Trinidad and Tobago following the five previous Heads of State: • Sir Ellis Clarke • Noor Hassanali • Arthur Napoleon Raymond Robinson • George Maxwell Richards • Anthony Thomas Aquinas Carmona We look forward to the support of Her Excellency, President Paula-Mae Weekes in her new role.
Scout Leaders Become Water Warriors
being presented with the Adopt A River Community-Based Training Manual which includes the ten water facts, watershed management, and an introduction to water quality parameters such as Nitrates, pH, and Turbidity.
On Sunday 15th April 2018, WASA’s Adopt A River Programme held a Consultation/ Water Warriors Training with leaders from across the southern hydrometric zones. The session was hosted by the Sons of the Pioneers Scout troop, under the leadership of Mr. Anand Rameshwar-Singh. The participants were from the following watersheds: • South Oropouche • Cedros • Rest South • Moruga • Erin • Guapo • Pilote • Moriquite The leaders were given a brief introduction to the Programme and its objectives before
The consultation aspect of the day’s proceedings began with a summary introduction by Dr. Sharda Mahabir on the many environmental issues faced by leaders in their respective watersheds. The leaders were asked to present to the Adopt A River team what project ideas they may have in order to solve these issues. Problems in the respective watersheds included flooding, improper waste disposal, water supply shortages and deforestation.
THE NEW concerned with helping each young person develop the inner motivation to be SCOUT METHOD toconsciously and actively involved in each Personal
3: Personal Progression
We continue looking at the eight elements of the Scout Method with Personal Progession: A progressive learning journey focused on motivating and challenging an individual to continually develop, through a wide variety of learning opportunities.
progression
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the
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person’s own development. It enables the young person to progress in their own development, in their own way, and at their own pace, in the general direction of the educational objectives appropriate to the relevant age section. Personal progression does not apply only within Scouting, but is also relevant for the young person outside Scouting, enabling them to set life goals and to learn to become an active citizen by acquiring skills for life and to engage in activities which addresses the needs of society. Personal progression should be autonomous (i.e. self-directed) but facilitated by adults. Young people are thus empowered, encouraged and supported appropriately to set their own challenges. It
Following lunch, the leaders were exposed to the process of collecting water samples via the bucket-and-rope process, and the use of the La Motte Testing kit which uses colorimetric tests to analyze water samples. The leaders were exposed to new games that they can use to teach watershed management and introduced to the Adopt A River Hydro Shield badge.
enables Scouts to exercise freedom of choice and engage in self-reflection Recognition is one of the most frequent ingredients of a learning opportunity and allows the discovery of the individual uniqueness of each young person as it deals with the inner values and is revealed through their capabilities in action. Recognition of progress by peers and adults helps a young person to gain confidence and to grow. The progressive badge system (e.g. progress stages, proficiency badges, or merit badges) is the main tool of recognition used to support this element of the Scout Method. However, personal progression can also be expressed in other ways, e.g. in the preparation of an annual plan, a learning journal, or a personal progression plan).
Scouting Around in Naparima Scout District The Naparima Scout District held a big Easter Camp from April 6th-8th at Hajarysingh’s Ranch, Penal Quinam Road, Penal. A total of 81 youths from 5 groups in the district attended: 44 Cub Scouts, 28 Scouts and 9 Venture Scouts. There were a lot of exciting activities in store including: • • • • • •
Swimming Wall Climbing Barrel Roll Challenge Commando Line Kayaking Zip lining
• • • •
Jungle Book Story Conservation Air Rifle Shooting Night Hike
The 25 leaders worked together to pull off an excellent and safe camp with all sections experiencing the excitement of scouting.
On April 12th, 2018, scouts from the Naparima Scout District appeared on Hot Like Pepper Radio U97.5fm to talk about Scouting in the district. The interview was arranged by District Commissioner, Vincent Ramoutar, with the help of Mr. Larry Sammy, a parent at 1st Penal Sea Scouts The youth present had a first time opportunity to talk live on air about their exciting experiences in Scouting.
Paxvale II Gets an Upgrade from Fatima Sea Scouts 11th Trinidad Sea Scout Group from Fatima College, Port of Spain gave a much needed upgrade to the water supply at our Paxvale II campsite. The effort was spearheaded, and majorly funded by Group Scout Leader, Gavin Chin Lee, as the group geared up for their Easter camp at the Santa Cruz location. The labour alone was estimated at over $10k and included the levelling of the ground for the tanks’ new location, the cleaning and relocation of the water tanks, installation of a new water pump and new, above-ground piping from the tanks to the bathrooms. The entire project took ten days, with the scouts lending their able hands and Chin Lee himself working tirelessly through the nights on camp while the scouts slept.
involved by understanding the problem and becoming a part of the solution.
ScoutsTT is embarking on its third annual national food drive, Scouting for Food. The project, which started in 2016, aims to alleviate hunger in Trinidad and Tobago. On a larger scale, it is aligned to the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of Zero Hunger. Hunger remains a high priority on our community service agenda, as we seek to increase awareness and encourage active participation within our membership and the wider local community. That means getting our young people
HOW IT WORKS? Scouting for Food collection bins will be placed at participating supermarkets around the country. Scout groups (Troop/Packs) will visit on a day on the weekend (or whenever is convenient) for two to three hours, informing customers about the drive and asking them to leave a donation in the bin on their way out. The group will clear the bin as they leave the store so that customers can continue to leave donations during the week. The next step is for the group to sort the donations to be distributed to a home or charity of their choice. This can be to a nearby or affiliated home, less fortunate students in a school or community etc. WHEN? This year’s project launches on Sunday, May 20th 2018 (United Way’s National Day of
Caring) at JTA C3 Centre, where 1st Naparima will be present, collecting donations between 9:00am and 12:00pm before doing a same day distribution to The Hope Centre in San Fernando. Over the following week(s), the bins will be rolled out into the remainder of participating stores where they will stay for a total of eight weeks. WHERE? We will be at all JTA Supermarkets, select Massy Stores and Xtra Foods locations. There is no limitation to where or how food can be collected. Groups are encouraged to send us information on other supermarkets where the project can be executed. MAJOR KEY: Scouting for Food is a part of the Scout Program and can also be used as community service project hours for Cub Scouts.