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Anne Scott (no stranger to the movement) chaired our last meeting and the address by Brendan Watson, Scouts Victoria Chief Commissioner.
Brendan also principal at the Catholic Regional College in Sydenham is a long term scout and educator. Joining the Scouts as young lad he has contributed much to that organization in leadership and representational roles especially.
A very enthusiastic supporter of the organization and the life experience benefits and training which it can deliver to participants, his address told of initiatives in Victoria to combat the often observed stagnation and membership pressures in mature volunteer organizations like the Scouts.
An advocate for thinking differently and invoking change consistent with modern demographics, Brendan talked about the increasing membership of the past recent several years (now approaching 20,000 in Victoria) and how Victoria is being observed world wide by the scouts movement as a model in which Scouting activity can lead to educational certification and accreditation for subjects in say the VCE.
Several stories about the scouts, complete with selected snap shots of the relevant individuals gave a wonderful idea of the extent of the impact of scouting in Victoria. These ranged from the sad story of the death of Luke Batty and organized counseling for scouts (an ongoing service), of how the King of Sweden ( and honorary worldwide leader) was chaperoned (without adult intervention) on a visit to Victoria by scouts (from young adults to "joeys"), the Big Day Scout event central Melbourne, and the efforts/horrific yet uplifting stories of two ex Syrian brothers ( scouts first in their home country) now firmly entrenched in the Victorian set.
Brendan reminded us of the community focus of scouting and that "scarf" worn by all members. The scarf is symbolic of the geographic origin of a scout, and here in Victoria the new design is a wonderful combination of Victorian and scouting icons.
At the end, after a slight overrun in time (the audience did not notice) chairman Anne and President Lawrence thanked Brendan for a great address.
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