Newsgroups: rec.scouting,rec.answers,news.answers Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!xlink.net!scsing.switch.ch!bernina!macman From: macman@bernina.ethz.ch (Danny Schwendener) Subject: rec.scouting FAQ #2: Scouting around the World Message-ID: Followup-To: poster Keywords: WOSM world brotherhood scout wolf cub pack troop faq Sender: macman@bernina.ethz.ch (Danny Schwendener) Supersedes: Organization: Pfadi Glockenhof, 8001 Zurich, Switzerland Date: Sun, 2 Jan 1994 03:15:10 GMT Approved: news-answers@uunet.uu.net Expires: Tue, 15 Feb 1994 03:15:03 GMT Lines: 1395 Xref: bloom-beacon.mit.edu rec.scouting:5948 rec.answers:3530 news.answers:13591 Archive-name: scouting/2_scouting-around-the-world Last-Modified: 1993/11/12 This file contains descriptions on how scouting organizations are set up around the world, and other worldwide information of interest. If you have been in a scouting organization that hasn't been described in this FAQ, or if you would like to add something to an existing description, please do all of us the favour. Write it up, post it on rec.scouting and send a copy to me so that it can be included in future issues of this FAQ. IMPORTANT NOTE: As I'm reaching the size limit for FAQ files, I had to edit the largest articles to reduce them to their essential parts. I also moved all references to local versions of the Scout Law & Promise to a single article at the end of this file. I saved the full original articles on ftp.ethz.ch in the directory rec.scouting/worldwide. This file is in digested format, like all FAQ files on this newsgroup. If you're using nn as newsreader, type 'G %" to split the digest into individual postings. In bn or rn, typing control-G should cause the reader to skip to the next posting within this file. There are nine FAQ files in the rec.scouting FAQ series. The FAQ files are posted in regular intervals (one file every three or four days) on rec.scouting, rec.answers and news.answers. They can also be retrieved through anonymous FTP from ftp.ethz.ch (path: rec.scouting/). As the FAQ files are updated regularly, make sure that you have the latest copy in your hands. The release date of this FAQ is indicated in the line starting with "Last-Modified:" at the top of this file. Files older than three months should be considered as outdated. This file or parts of it may be freely used, printed and re-distributed as long as you enclose this paragraph and keep the references to the respective contributors and to the maintainer (listed below) intact. -- Danny Schwendener macman@bernina.ethz.ch Wolfsmeute Nidau/Glockenhof, Sihlstr. 33, CH-8001 Zurich, Switzerland -------------------------------- From: macman@bernina.ethz.ch (Danny Schwendener) Subject: Scouts worldwide - the figures Date: Tue, 12 May 1992 09:58:26 GMT I just went over the 92 figures of the WOSM, and thought that they might be of interest to this group. I think that they will amaze more than one here. Members of scouting organizations, regrouped by regions: Far East: 7'000'000 North America: 4'200'000 Europe: 2'000'000 Africa: 500'000 Middle East: 500'000 South America: 300'000 Australia/Oceania: 200'000 Note: these figures cover member organizations of the World Organization of the Scouting Movement (WOSM) only. -------------------------------- From: chick@hilbert.maths.utas.edu.au Subject: Scouting in Australia Date: Wed, 25 Mar 1992 05:55:18 GMT Here in Oz (alias Australia!) our Scouting system works as follows: _Section_ _Age Range_ _Oz Grade Range (approx.)_ Joey Scouts 6 - 8 Kindergarten/Preparatory-Grade 2 Cub Scouts 8 - 11 Grade 2 - Grade 5 Scouts 10.5 - 15 Grade 5 - Grade 9/10 Venturer Scouts 14.5 - 18 Grade 9 - Grade 11/12 Rover Scouts 18 - 26 Adult (University +) Joey Scouts is new for us - the children don't wear full uniform, just the scarf of their local group (all our sections are mixed boys/girls now ... if the leaders of the local troop/unit/group (Oz name) so decide, although males are still in the majority). All the other sections have been around for quite a while, and are fully uniformed. Adult leaders may obtain their "Warrant" (basic qualification for leadership) after they are 18. Most of the local groups will have a Cub Scout and a Scout section at the very least (depending on the size of the area), Venturer units are the next most likely, followed by Joey mobs (in Australia a joey is a baby kangaroo, and the collective noun for kangaroo is "mob") and then Rover crews. (This is roughly how it is in Tasmania, at any rate.) Some groups are big enough to support a couple of Cub packs, but this is about the only area in which doubling up occurs. A number of groups make up a district (there are 9 or 10 groups in our district), and a district is usually a (reasonably) well-defined geographical area. A few districts will make up a region, and in little ol' Tassie it takes three regions to fill the state. -------------------------------- From: oakes@rtsg.mot.com (Ronald Oakes) and smh@cbnewsm.cb.att.com (s.m.henning) Subject: Scouting in the USA (BSA) Date: Wed, 25 Mar 1992 19:28:25 GMT _Section_ _Age Range_ _U.S. Grades_ _Unit/Program_ Tiger Cubs (6) 1st Pack/Cub Scout Wolf Cubs (7) 2nd Pack/Cub Scout Bear Cubs (8) 3rd Pack/Cub Scout Webelos (9-10) 4th and 5th Pack/Cub Scout Boy Scouts (10.5)-17 6th - (12th) Troop/Boy Scout Varsisity 14-17 (9th - 12th) Troop (Team)/Boy Scout Venture 14-17 (9th - 12th) Troop/Boy Scout Career Awareness Exploring (14-16) 9th or 10th Post/Explorer Explorers 14-20 (9th - Adult) Post/Explorer Sea Explorers 14-20 (9th - Adult) Ship/Explorer Air Explorers obsolete Adults 18- (Adult) Any (not Scoutmaster until 21) Tiger Cubs are eqivlent to the Australian Joey's. They are a highly parent/son orinteated activity. The Tiger's do meet with the cub pack. Wolf and Bear dens make up the "traditional" cub scout program. Webelos are a transition from Cubs to Scouts (Webelos means "We'll Be Loyal Scouts). About 3 years ago the Boy Scout (10.5-18) program was rearranged to incude Varsitity teams and Venture crews within the troop for the older boys. The varisty program emphisizies sports, the Venture emphisizes High Adventure. Both of these programs are supposed to be more Boy run than even the normal troop. Varsity Teams may also be indepentant (I think). Explorers is normally emphasized towards carreers. However, a number of "High Adventure," and hoby posts exists. The Sea Explorers has seperate positions and awards and uses sailing. Air Explorers appears to be the flying equivlent to Sea Explorers (I only know they exist from looking through my Insigana Guide the other day). At this time Girls may only join Explorer type units. However, unregistered girls may participate in Venture and Varsity activities. Also, no adult position is restricted by Sex. Personally, I suspect that girls will be allowed in all levels of scouting sometime in the next 10 years. In addition to the normal program, scouts may be elected to become a member of the Order of the Arrow, an honor camping orginazation. These activities should be in addition to normal troop, team or post activities. The Order of Arrow is primarily a service organization. Unfortunately many boys and adults join for the honor and forget the obligation to service. Alpha Phi Omega is an service fraternity orginazation that is closely associated with scouting. See the separate message for more information. Any boy with special needs can be placed in any program at any age and stay in that program as long as it is appropriate to his ability. We also have a new program called Learning For Life which is fully coed and is designed to be used in schools. It primarily uses lesson plans the are related closely to life skills for disadvantaged students. It does not use rank, uniform or anyting labeled scouting. Traditional scout programs can also be used in schools during class room time, but they only register the boys unless the students are over 14. Career Awareness Exploring is an in school program which brings speakers into the school to describe various career choices. It is supplemented with traditional explorer posts that concentrate in more detail on careers. Address for further information: Boy Scouts of America National Office Irving, Texas 75015-2079 Check your phone book for the local Council Office -------------------------------- From: millard@acsu.buffalo.edu Also-From: dmahoney@eniac.seas.upenn.edu Also-From: oconnell@rye.cs.unm.edu Subject: Scouting in the USA (BSA) - General Organizational & ethical Info Scouting began as a world-wide movement that was established in all parts of the world, and attempts to further the education, moral standards, and ethics of young people around the globe. The scouting movement does much, much more than educate boys about the outdoors and camping. It provides a learning institution in which a young man can acquire such things as leadership skills, public speaking abilities, and the techniques needed to run a large scale organization in cooperation with several other people. Boy Scouts of America is primarily involved in character-building and values-training. So, unfortunately, this often can limit the extent of their focus on backcountry activities or environmental information. Different troops are different. Find the best ones. A large part of scouting has emphasis on the outdoors. Many of our themes, and the skills that we teach are centered on the theme of camping, and the respect for mother nature. We educate these boys about such things as knots, cooking, and firebuilding, and we also instruct them on ideals such as low impact camping (which is being practiced more and more) basic backpacking, and canoeing to name a few. In order to let many troops experience the outdoors, there are thousands of camps located through-out the country. The majority of these are run by local councils (many troops in one area constitute a council, and there are many councils in a state); however, there are a few larger camps which are run by the national office. One of the most popular of these is Philmont Scout Ranch located in Cimarron, New Mexico. This is an area of land that has hundreds of miles of backpacking trails which runs semi-guided trips for troops all over the nation and world. This is typically a wonderful experience since it promotes low impact backpacking. The scouts are taught about the proper equipment to use such as boots,stoves,packs,etc. There are several other National High Adventure Bases located around the country, such as the Florida Sea Base, the Robert Service Canoe Base, located near the Minnesota boundary waters. Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts are unfortunately and strangely distant from each other. Only Scouts and Explorers can attend the "High Adventure" bases. Eventually, the increasing number of women Scoutmasters (they do exist) will ask why they, their son and husband can receive what their daughter can't. Some quasi-merger or cooperation agreement is likely in the future. Quite recently, scouting as a national organization has come into the media concerning several court cases involving moral, as opposed to environmental issues. Specifically the evidence about discrimination in various circumstances have come into question. There are cases pending in court about the dismissal of a gay scoutmaster, the refusal of the regional headquarters to admit a young girl into cub scouts, and the issue of religious influence on scouting. -------------------------------- From: naraht@drycas.club.cc.cmu.edu (Randy Finder) Subject: Alpha Phi Omega (USA) Date: Fri Jan 22 1993 19:02:22 GMT Alpha Phi Omega is a National Service Fraternity whose cardinal principles are Leadership, Friendship and Service. Out program of service is directed to four areas: Campus, Community, Nation, and Fraternity. We were founded by former Boy Scouts who wanted to contine Scouting ideals in the college setting. We have about 350 active chapters in the United States and more than 225,000 students have chosen Alpha Phi Omega. There are about 150 chapters of Alpha Phi Omega, Phillipines and we are interested in extending to other countries. We were founded in 1929, until 1967 membership was only former Boy Scouts, however today membership is now open to any college student, male or female. We are not a social fraternity. We have no selective or exclusive membership requirements and there is absolutely no hazing. We maintain strong ties to its scouting roots. HOWEVER, the BSA does not finance or govern the fraternity in any way. Examples of Service to Scouting include sponsoring Scout troops, staffing camporees and other functions, cleaning up Scout camps and assisting in fundraising. Address for further information: Alpha Phi Omega National Office 14901 E. 42nd St. Independence, MO 64055-9932 -------------------------------- From: szafrans@copper.ucs.indiana.edu (Pam Furlong Backstrom) Subject: Scouting in the USA (GSUSA) Date: 2-APR-1992 ORG: The Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA) 830 Third Avenue New York, NY 10022 Break down of Program Age Levels (Girl Scouting is for Girls only) Daisy Girl Scout 5-6 yo K Brownie Girl Scout 6-8 yo 1-3 grade Junior Girl Scout 8-11 yo 3-6 grade Cadette Girl Scout 11-14 yo 6-9 grade Senior Girl Scout 14-17 yo 9-12 grade Girl Scout Motto: Be Prepared Girl Scout slogan: Do a Good Turn Daily [Girl Scout Promise & Law: see separate article at the end of this FAQ -- Ed.] -------------------------------- From: db14@hp825.bih.no (Vegard Engen) Subject: Scouting in Norway. Date: 26 Mar 92 13:03:44 GMT [Note: Jan Pharo has posted more information on the administrative and organizational parts of NSF. I have stored this article on ftp.ethz.ch in the directory rec.scouting/countries.] In Norway we have several scout-associations, NSF, YMCA and YWCA. However, they are cooperating well, I think (At least so in this town, Bergen). NSF (Norges SpeiderForbund = Norwegian Scout Association) is mixed boys and girls, they were two separate associations, but joined their forces in '78. YMCA (KFUM in Norwegian) is only men, as the name suggests, however I think they are closely linked with YWCA nowadays, and there may be exceptions, such as female scoutmasters. YWCA is the female counterpart. I will after this speak about NSF only, since that's the organisation I'm a member of. Most of it will apply for the other assications too, though, at least the major parts. NSF is divided into 4 age-groups: 6-7: Bever scouts (this one is fairly new, not so many have them yet). 8-10: Cub scouts. 11-16: Scouts (I really have no other name for them. :-)) 16+ : Rovers. The lower age for a scoutmaster is 17 years, however it is possible to become an assistant scoutmaster from the age of 16 years. Many scoutmasters are also rovers, and scoutmasters and rovers are often two names of the same group of scouts. There IS no official higher age for rovers, but the natural limit is somewhere around 22-23 years, when one often go away, get married or simply get other interests. In Norway we belive that scouting is outing, and try to do as much of our activities as possible in the nature. We have national camps every 4th year, and regional camp every 4th year, in such a way there will be two years between every major camp. In addition the groups have camps of their own, and there is also arranged national camps for rovers in particular, since they will often have other interests than younger scouts. A typical size for a national camp nowadays is 19.000 scouts, and the last regional camp in Bergen counted 650 scouts. This was with guests, though, there is always guest from other countries at our camps, and even at our last regional camp we had 150 foreign guests, some even from so far away as Spain. Last, a little tip for all those who leave their group for studies: In Norway we have own scout-groups for students in the larger towns, so those who want to continue with scouting when they leave town can join those groups. I know they have a lot of fun, and at least the one in Trondheim is a large resource when it comes to arranging national evenements. However, I guess Bjoern Arne can tell you more about that (arneberg@idt.unit.no). -------------------------------- From: dtchn@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Dih!-ty / Dicksen Tanzil) Subject: Scouting in Indonesia Date: 26 Mar 92 15:19:04 GMT The Scouting Movement of the Republic of Indonesia has a membership of about 15 million people (out of a population of 190 million) which is PROBABLY the largest in the world. It is open to both sex and is organized as follow: Siaga (Cub Scout/Brownie) ................ 6-10 yr old Penggalang (Boy/Girl Scout)............... 11-15 yr " Penegak (Venture Scout) .................. 16-.... (I forgot) Pandega (Rover Scout) .................... (Also forgot) Indonesia Scout groups is also open to all religions and, in fact, MAY NOT have any religious affiliation even though when it is sponsoured by a church or a mosque. My Scout Group is affiliated to a Church but not to Christianity..... -------------------------------- From: hung@octel.com (Hung Le) Subject: Scouting experiences in Vietnam Date: Wed, 1 Apr 1992 14:52:09 GMT My name is Hung Le, and I'm a former cub scout, boy scout, venturer, rover scout and scouter of BSVN (Boy Scout of Vietnam). Currently, I'm with the Santa Clara County Council, BSA as a unit commissioner. I would like share with all fellow scouts out there on the Net- work some personal experiences that I have had with the scout or- ganizations, especially with the BSVN. These experiences are so valuable to my life and my children as well... When I joined the Boy Scouts of Vietnam, my country was torn apart by the war. Everywhere I went, there were always fighting leftovers. It was dangerous to travel, abeit going camping, but even so, we managed to have wonderful times, troop leaders were very creative in finding places for kids to camp, to have a meeting location. Scout meeting was always outdoors, in the open air. A lot of times we went camping without a scoutmaster because of the mili- tary draft. During my 6 years as a boy scout, I had three scout- masters and their average age was about 19 years old. I remember taking my Panther patrol (yes, a Blank Panther), on a trek to a remote waterfall. Each member had to be separated by a distant of 10 meters, so that a bobby trap grenade would not de- cimate the whole patrol. I learned valuable survival skills from the boy scouts, during the war, not only to help myself, but help to my family and other beings as well. Beside learning knots and semaphores, we also learned camouflaging, how to recognize booby traps, different type of ordnance (by default), and servicing re- fugee camps. Servicing refugee camps was a constant activity for the troops and the posts. Sometimes the pack would chip in their help in making greeting lines for some big shots who come and visited refugee camps. During the Tet offensive of 1968, my ex- plorer post managed a makeshift refugee camp in Dalat province for more than 3 months. This included security for people in the camp (A lot of problems came from rowdy bands of government sol- diers trying to intimidate the female refugees, but when they saw the scouts, they thought another military unit was handling the refugee camp). This also included searching for food (mostly, by contacting GI units and the government in the area) for refugees. Sanitation was always the biggest task of the day: Talk about cleaning the out-houses for refugees!!! At times we organized 'dare-devil' teams to go into battle areas to retrieve civilian and, sometimes, military bodies to bury or to take back to the city morgue. The morgue was always full during those days. In the city, there was another youth group organized by the Red Cross, and we competed with them in collecting the wounded and the dead, along with other war trophies. One time we collected a "broken" bomb and decorated it as a gate for our refugee camp. It was quite a deterrent for those who passed through that gate. The war also took a personal toll in my life. My very first cub- master was blown up in his Jeep from an ambush. I went to his funeral without seeing his face since there were nothing left to see. The second cubmaster was killed and left behind his pregnant wife and two small girls. The third cubmaster spent almost ten year in the re-education camps. My first patrol leader volun- teered for Airborne division at the age of 17, and came back in a light casket. His mother told me that after he was killed in the DMZ area, he had to wait for a few months for transport of his body back home... There were so many Vietnamese scouts in my area that I know never made it to 18th year birthday. Frankly, without scouting, it would be very hard for me to find solace for those senseless killings. Looking back, I admired all of my scout leaders. They were true men (unfortunately, I never had any fe- male leaders, even at cub age) of their word, who lived up to scout promises and scout laws. At times, they weighed their lives light as a feather, but sometimes, as heavy as the biggest mountain in the north. At that time, deserting from the Army was rampant, but I rarely saw or heard of scouts were deserters. Even in that bloody environment, I had a blast when I was in scouting. I had so much opportunities to learn about myself and about other people. Nowhere else in life have I found such deep and emotional relationships. It was not unusual that my whole pa- trol attended Christmas mass with one Catholic member, although 6 out 7 members were Buddists. My favorite patrol member was a Chinese who came to the scout meeting with Chinese goodies from his father. Many times my patrol went camping near the National Military Academy so that at night times, we could look at the sky, watching the yellow flares in searching for communist in- truders. During teen age, I traveled up and down the coast of Vietnam, hitch hiking with two other scouts to the Delta areas. We spent two days in a notorious, scary Cambodia village near the border with Vietnam, and had a chance to observe how people were trafficking at the border. A few times, my troop went camping out of town by trekking to the military airstrip. We got in there be- cause we knew well the soldiers at the entry post. Besides I heard that the American Senior Military Advisor there was also a former eagle scout. We waited for the next empty cargo plane, asked the pilot where is his next stop, then asked for a ride. Many times we had to camp at the dirt spot nearby. It was adven- turous and a lot of fun, and a lot of disapointment too. During the Spring offensive of 1972, I went to the national jam- boree with more than 10,000 scouts camping in one of the very hot spots near Saigon. The GI Star and Stripes newspaper called it the "Warboree". Every night, there were skirmishes between two ranger batailons and the local communists from the neighborhood village.(It was possible that some of the local boys also parti- cipated in the Jamboree). The opening night was festooned with "Fire Dragons" tracers, shot from C-47 aircraft circulating ahead. Laying their backs on a green grass field, the scouts tried to decifer beautiful colors from different flares, or 'pfuff pfuff' noise from different types of gunship helicopters. Unforgettable experiences!! The Boy Scouts of Vietnam Association, ceased officially to exist as a member of the World Scout Bureau when the communists took over the South in 1975, but thousands of Vietnamese still join scout organizations in the country they resided in. Many scout units were formed in the refugee camp in Philippine, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Hong Kong. I believe in France, there is an official Vietnamese Scout Association operating under the Scout Federation of France. It is estimated that there are more than 3000 Vietnamese scouts in Vietnamese scout units world-wide. In 1990, we had the Third International Vietnamese Jamboree in Cutter Camp, Boulder Creek, California, with more than 700 Viet- namese scouts from 6 countries. The event was also to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Boy Scout of Vietnam. -------------------------------- From: macman@bernina.ethz.ch (Danny Schwendener) Subject: Scouting in Switzerland and Liechtenstein Date: Wed, 25 Mar 1992 12:38:55 GMT _Branch_ _Age Range_ _Uniform_ Wolves (Cub Scouts) 6 - 12 blue Scouts 10 - 18 beige Rover/Ranger Scouts 17 - 25+ dark red Leaders 18 - 30+ dark green The reason why the age groups overlap is because we move a kid to the next level according to his/her maturity, not his/her age. Our organization is mixed at all levels. The only thing that still reminds of the old separation between girl and boy scouts is that girl Rovers are (still) called Rangers. The young age of our leaders is a tradition. Even members of the district or national committees are rarely older than 30. The result: more freedom at the unit level, no discrimination, and a very important experience in leadership for young people. Special scout units include Sea Scouts around the major lakes and PTA scouts for handicapped kids (PTA means "scouts despite all" in german). The mandatory parts of our uniform are the shirt, the tie, any kind of good hiking boots, a firelighter and a swiss army knife. Optional parts are belt, scout jeans, hat, dagger, etc. A kid receives his/her tie and vulgo (scout name) from his unit leader in an initiation ceremony. Troops, patrols and packs meet every saturday afternoon for 3-4 hours. We spend 98% of our time outside in the woods or in the field. I get inside with my cubs three or four times a year, when the weather is clearly unbearable (temperature below -25 Celsius or snowstorm). Otherwise, we're outside. The Swiss Scouting Movement is a member of J+S, a governmental institution which promotes sports among youths. Camps for kids in the 12-18 age range are subsidized by J+S, and we also receive some basic material (tents, denim square units, ropes) from J+S for these occasions. J+S is also deeply involved in leader training (because unit leaders are basically special youth sport trainers). A major challenge for the national committees (and every nationwide company) is that Switzerland is divided in four language areas. As a result, there's not too much documentation available from National. There's no national scouting handbook per se. There's a handbook on scouting techniques which is edited by our council and has become the de facto reference book distributed by National. This book however is purely technical and does not handle the human and ethical aspects of scouting. Every 'ordinary' scouting event is embedded into a story over here. And the emphasis on story embedding is even higher for cub scouts, the idea being for the kids to live an adventure instead of watching them on TV. We end up doing the standard scouting activities out in the woods, but the reason why we do these activities and the results they lead to relate to pure fantasy. So when we mounted a giant eight-side "Berliner" tent out of 62 x 62" tent units, it was because we needed a flying saucer to escape from the planet Gorgonzola, and when we built a hang-bridge over the river, it was the gate between the spacelab and the station Mir, with millions of miles of empty space around us. -------------------------------- From: per@aber.ac.uk (Peter David Roberts) Subject: Scouting in the UK Date: 3 Apr 92 11:27:34 GMT Scouting in the UK still follows many of the ideas of the origional movement Over the years the age ranges and training awards have varied and in the last 18 months the Scout Association has agreed that if sections wish to be co-ed they may be. The Girl Guide movement is separate and I shall leave someone else to post on their format. UK Scouting is divided into 5 sections which I consider in turn Beavers age range 6-8 no specific training program aimed at fun and companionship and organised soley by the leaders. Lodge based. Cub Scouts age range 8-10.5 three stage training program(can't remember full details as it changed recently) also a diverse range of proficiency badges. Run by the leaders but with inputs from the sixers in a sixers council. Six based Scouts age range 10.5 - 15.5 The main training section with 4 stages of training leading up to the Chiefs Scout Award. Again a wide range of proficiency badges available. Program is decided by the patrol leaders council and put into practice by the PL's with the help and expertise of the leaders. Patrol based with emphasis on cooperation. Venture Scouts age range 15.5 - 20 The final of the training sections only two awards available the highest being the training award in scouting the Queens Scout Award. Emphasis is on self developement and community help. The unit is run by an executive of its members and the main task of the leader is as an advisor and keeping everything legal. Scout Fellowship age range 20+ Section usualy at the district level available to anyone who wishes to stay involved in scouting but without taking out a leadership warrent. Generaly more social than scouting but offering a very good source of experience for scouters in need of specific help. Link age range 20+ Similar to Scout fellowship only orgainsed by the Guide association Link also tend to be more active with social events. Link is an international organisation. SSAGO (Student Scout and Guide organisation) Based around Universities and colleges, these cater for Students. Programmes are both active and social much like a Venture Scout or Ranger Guide unit. The last three sections take part in major organised scout events (Competition hikes etc.) -------------------------------- From: bcockburn@acorn.co.uk (Bruce Cockburn) Subject: Scouting in the UK - F.S.E. ORG: F.S.E. (Fe`de`ration du Scoutisme Europe`en) of Great Britain. The F.S.E. is a very small traditional Scout organisation and has nothing to do with the mainstream organisation "The Scout Association". The F.S.E. of GB is a member of an organisation called C.E.S. (Confederation of European Scouts), a pan-european organisation which binds traditional Scouting organisations together across Europe. National Commissioner: Mr Richard Hyde, 68 Glebe Road, Deanshanger, Milton Keynes, England, MK19 6LU Section: Wolf Cubs Wolf Cubs (often shortened to just Cubs, but never referred to as Cub Scouts) is for boys and girls between the ages of seven and ten and a half years. Cubs are organised into "Sixes", with a Sixer and a Second. The Cub syllabus is as follows: Tenderpad, tests to be passed before Investiture. First star, Second star, Proficiency Badges, Wolf Cub Award. Leaping Wolf, only Wolf Cub badge to worn on the Scout uniform. [Wolf Cub Law and Promise: see separate article at the end of this FAQ -- Ed.] Section: Scouts Scouts is for boys and girls between the ages of ten and sixteen years. Scouts are organised into Patrols each patrol has a Scout as the Patrol Leader and the Assistant Patrol Leader. The Scout syllabus is as follows: Tenderfoot, tests to be passed before Investiture. Second Class, First Class, Proficiency Badges, Explorer Cord. Baden-Powell Award, the only Scout Badge worn on the Rover or Leader's uniform. [Scout Law and Promise: see separate article at the end of this FAQ -- Ed.] Section: Rovers Rovers is the section for boys and girls over the age of 16, there is no upper age limit. The Rover syllabus is as follows; Ramblers Badge, Project Badge. Rovers use and live by the same Law and Promise as the Scout section. -------------------------------- From: rickcl@POGO.WV.TEK.com, rcraig@library.carleton.ca Subject: Scouting in Canada Also-From: Patrick De Gagne, Peter Choi, Bill Hately Date: 29 Sep 93 23:55 Beavers 4-7 Well, Beavers are the youngest members of Scouting. They're being introduced to the movement thru games and fun. Their Moto is "Sharing Sharing Sharing". Adult members take care of all the work. Colony leaders are responsible for delivering the program including taking the youth members on camps. Parents are usually encouraged to participate in the program and are required at camp outings. Wolf Cubs 8-11 The Canadian Cub program is similar to Cubbing in the UK. (They are not subdivided as in the US. Cubs play games and perform activities that involve more instruction than what is offered in the Beaver program. The program, through its motto encourages youth to "do their best" and to be responsible for what they do and say. Members of the pack participate in choosing program activities through "Sixer Councils". The program is on the most part run by the Pack Leaders with some help from the youth. Cubs camp more often, in tents during Fall, Spring and Summer, but only in cabins during Winter and extreme cold weather at other times of the year. Scouts 11-14 Most of their activities are geared towards badge work, instruction and camps. They still play, but not much. Scouts camp quite often and almost always in tents or in shelter. As well, the Scouts are responsible with the duties of camp. Scouts participate in small group activites through which values of team work and the importance of each member is taught. Venturers 15-17 Venturers are young men and women who are challenged to democratically plan and run their own activities. The group is accountable to an Advisor who does just that...he advises. The Company is a group of typically 5-10 teens (co-ed), The size varies having an executive consisting of (but not all) President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and a Quartermaster. The Venturers Motto is "Challenge". Meetings vary in the operation from "executive meetings" similar to that of a board of directors to "social meetings" such as games or activities nights. They do all their planing themselves, they plan trips, camps, fund raisers, social events... The advisor is there to provide guidance and assistance and to ensure that Scouting and legal obligations are met. Rovers 18-26 The oldest youth members of Scouting (not counting leaders of course!). Their Moto is "Service". Individually or in small teams, Rovers pursue service activities contributing to personal development. Crews are provided guidance through an Advisor who assists and ensures that Scouting and legal obligations are met. Rovers participate in social camping activites called Moots. A moot is a gathering of their peers for camping, fun and friendship. In November of 1993, the National Council of Scouts Canada officially made Scouts Canada a fully co-ed organization. For years, Venturers and Rovers have been Co-ed and for the past three years,(since 1989), the other sections have been co-ed on an experimental basis. -------------------------------- From: snippala@toty.joensuu.fi (Satu Nippala) Subject: Scouting in Finland [Note: This article has been edited, leaving only the essential parts. The full article can be retrieved from ftp.ethz.ch in the directory rec.scouting/countries -- Danny] GUIDING AND SCOUTING IN FINLAND Guiding and Scouting were established simultaneously in Finland in 1910. The two separate Unions were merged to form a single National Organization in 1972. The assosiation is called The Guides and Scouts of Finland (Suomen Partiolaiset - Finlands Scouter ry) and consists of 18 Member Districts, one of which is swedish- speaking (Finlands Svenska Scouter rf - The Swedish-speaking Guides and Scouts in Finland). The organization is affiliated to the World Organisation of the Scout Movement (WOSM) as well as to the World Assosiation of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS). The membership figure including all age-groups is around 80,000. The members belong to about 850 local troops of 20 to 300 members, which form the Districts (at 10 to 140 troops per district) . There are Guides and Scouts from the southernmost tip of the country to far beyond the Artic Circle. GUIDING / SCOUTING PROMOTES : *a positive attitude towards religion *loyalty to one's country *international understanding *the ideal of service *respect for the convictions of others *responsability for one's own life and the environment *involvement in social activities *a healthy way of life THE WAYS AND MEANS BY WHICH GUIDING AND SCOUTING WORKS : *Ideals and Promise *the Patrol System *a Program that advances by progressive stages *training for Leadership duties at different levels *teamwork *learning by doing *the use of creative imagination *games and activating projects *outdoor activities *activities with international and/or religional emphasis LEVELS (7)-10 years : Wolf Cubs ("Sudenpentu") Wolf cubs meet in packs of 10-20 kids. Some of the packs are mixed, the boys and girls sharing all activities at all stages. A Sudenpentu Leader is over 16, with a required training and experience background. The programme is sub-divided into five progressive stages: *Welcome *Pikkuhukka (pet name for a wolf cub) *Hukka (pet name of folk origin for a wolf) *Susi (wolf in finnish) *Transition stage The Finnish Sudenpentu-members participate in traditional Guiding and Scouting activities: outings, camps in the summer, crosscountry skiing and skating in the winter, games, excursions, day or weekend trips, competitions, handicrafts etc. The children also take part in various service projects. 10-14 years : Scouts ("Vartioik{inen") Translated, Vartioik{inen means "at Patrol age". The Programme for this age-group is diversified -- the way it is carried out depends on the interests of each patrol. Programme and Pins: The programme for the Vartioik{inen - level is divided into three progressive stages: the Third Class, the Second Class and finally the First Class. There is also a number of interest badges. The badges are made of metal. The third class badge is the symbol of Scout movement, the second one is simply with the text : Be Prepared and the First one is the Finnish lion - our states symbol on the scoutflower. The Patrol leader is called Vartionjohtaja, or VJ for short. Their programme is divided into five sectors: *Guide and Scout ideology, their ideal of service *outdoor and camping skills *knowledge of Guiding and Scouting and Society *nature and its conservation *handicrafts, skills over 15 years of age : Rangers & Rovers ("Vaeltaja") Vaeltaja operate in groups of varying sizes. Their leader is often of the same age as the eldest members in his or her group. The group plans its own programme. All Vaeltaja activities are based on developing a positive attitude towards service. Hobbies are also very important. The programme is based on six ideals: *knowledge of Guiding and Scouting and Society *service *outdoor activities, physical exercise *hobbies *nature and its conservation *Guide and Scout ideals The ideal of service can be realized e.g. by participating in voluntary rescue service teams. International activities are also an important aspect of Guiding and Scouting, especially at this level. SPECIAL SCOUT UNITS include Sea-, Handicap- ("Sisu") and Radio Guiding and Scouting units. SPECIAL PROGRAMMES include the promotion of international understanding and the Child and Youth Political Programme ("Nuopo"). -------------------------------- From: rusa@diku.dk (Bjarne Steensgaard) Subject: Scouting in Denmark In Denmark we have several Scout associations; the major ones being The Danish Guide and Scout Association (Danish: Det Danske Spejderkorps = DDS), YMCA Scouts, and YWCA Scouts. Minor organizations are The Baptist Scouts of Denmark (Danish: Dansk Baptisk Spejderkorps) and The Yellow Scouts (I do not know if these still exist!). There is one additional uniformed organization called FDF/FPF, but they insist on NOT being scouts (they originate from the British Boy's Brigade) even though they have a program that resembles the scout programs very much. They do however insist more on involving the whole family. DDS is mixed boys and girls. There used to be two separate organizations, but they merged in 1973. The YMCA Scouts is for both boys and girls, but I believe there is still a majority of boys. The YWCA Scouts is only for girls. FDF/FPF is mixed. The uniform of DDS Scouts is dark blue. The uniform of YMCA/YWCA scouts are dark green. All three organizations supplement the uniform with a neckerchief according to the groups choice. The uniform of FDF/FPF is light blue without a neckerchief. I believe that there around 25.000 members of each of the three major scouting organizations out of a population of 5.000.000 people in Denmark. FDF/FPF have a similar membership figure as far as I recall. DDS is (I believe) the only Danish scout organization that does not require religion to be a part of scouting. The only requirement being that the scouts "Find their own faith and respect others'" (part of the Scout Law). All the other associations are based on Christianity. DDS use the following age division guidelines: 6-8: Micro Scouts 8-10: Mini Scouts 10-12: Junior Scouts 12-16: Scouts 16-23: Senior Scouts The age-divisions are only suggestions. Approximately one-fourth of the groups does not distinguish between mini and junior scouts and have both age groups in the same pack. The other Scouting organizations have slightly different age divisions and generally use more inspiring names. In general the youngest scouts are around 6 and the oldest are above 20. All Scouting organizations in Denmark are based on groups. A group is usually a combination of a unit from each of the age groups. It is normal to stay in the same group in all of your scouting life. Leaders move from group to group, but scouts seldom do. In DDS, the groups are organized in districts (divisions) that must have at least 500 scouts. The districts are combined in areas. I cannot remember how many areas there are, but a guess would be between 5 and 10. Leaders are from almost all age groups. It is not unusual that a unit have leaders of quite different age. Leaders are both old scouts and parents. I believe there is a majority of non-parents. It is not a tradition that parents follow their kids through the different age groups; instead they tend to stay in the same unit a number of years. There is no notion of ranks (like Star, Life, Eagle in the BSA) in any of the major scouting organizations in Denmark. A few groups implement something on their own, but the general emphasis is not on advancement. There are merit badges for mini scouts, junior scouts, and normal scouts, but in many places these are not very used. In my pack, the cub scouts (mini AND junior scouts) rarely have more than 5 merit badges, of which one is the "knife award" that they have to take before they are given a scout name. -------------------------------- From: rickc@POGO.WV.TEK.com Subject: Cub Scouting in Canada This is from "Scouting Try It!" published by Scouts Canada. It talks about all their levels of Scouting. I will just type the sections on Beavers and Wolf Cubs. The text in brackets are my notes. Their address for more information is: Scouts Canada National Council 1345 Baseline Rd PO Box 5151, Stn. F Ottawa, Ont CANADA K2C 3G7 Beavers (5-7 years) [From Stevie] "In my neighbourhood most activites are for older kids so when my best friend Ross told me about Beavers I ran home from school and asked Mom to sign me up right away. The first meeting was strange because all the other kids had vests and hats with tails on them. Now I don't think it's so strange, actualy it's really neat! We do tail slaps, make crafts, go on outings and best of all, Ross and I are in the same lodge." Wolf Cubs (8-10 years) [From Ryan] "When I was little my Dad would tell me stories about when he was young. His favourite story is about the time he went to a Cub camp and the Cubs in his six [den] thought they had tricked Akela [Cubmaster] into taking them on a late night hike to watch for UFO's. When they got to the lookout the other leaders were there with hot chocolate and cookies. All along Akela had planned it anyway. So when I went to my first Cub camp I wasn't surprised when our Akela woke us up at midnight. But I didn't expect to be introduced to the Scouts from our group [One unit from each age is in a group. This way the Scouts feed into the next old unit.] who were set up in the next valley ready to give us a great campfire and sing song. Cubbing is fun, I already have 2 stars." -------------------------------- From: michell@canada.hp.com Subject: Scouting on the Air: Radio Amateur Scout Technical Info Date: 15 Feb 93 16:05:59 PST The information I have is that there are two International Scout Nets operating regularly - the European one on 14.290khz on Saturdays at 0930 GMT and the World net on Saturdays on 21.360khz at 1800 GMT. I received this via JOTA in 1988 (I have been organizing a JOTA station for the District for the last 8 years and have been an Amateur Radio for the last year). I have tried listning in to the World net a few times with no luck, I would like to know if it is still on. -------------------------------- From: macman@bernina.ethz.ch (Danny Schwendener) Subject: Scouting on the Air: JOTA (World Jamboree On The Air) Also-From: David Miller, Peter Swynford Date: 3 Mar 93 10:23:38 JOTA is a yearly worldwide scout jamboree (meeting) on radio-amateur frequencies. The event takes place on the third weekend of October. In 1993, it is scheduled on October 16-17. As a first for 1993, a JOTI (Jamboree On The Internet) will be held as off-stage event during the JOTA. To participate, connect to the Internet Relay Chatter (IRC) by using the irc client on your local host or by telnetting to . There will be a channel named "Scouting" (I think) where JOTers will meet during that time. JOTA is a worldwide event. Units may operate for 48 hours, from Saturday 00.00 h until Sunday 24.00 h local time. Due to the world's time differences, this period is not the same for everyone. To determine the times at which you can most likely contact a certain part of the world, calculate a time difference and ask your amateur radio operator about the radio propagation prediction (a sort of weather forecast for radio waves). Any authorized frequency may be used to establish a contact. Just call "CQ JAMBOREE", or answer Scout stations who are calling to establish a contact. National radio regulations must be strictly observed (in most countries, a licensed amateur radio operator must be present and a logbook must be held). To find each other easily, listen on the agreed World Scout Frequencies listed below. Another hint to inprove your success rate: in the weeks preceding the event, keep an eye on rec.scouting for other stations and arrange meeting times and frequencies with them in advance. World Scout Frequencies Band SSB (phone) CW (morse) 80m 3.740 & 3.940 MHz 3.590 MHz 40m 7.090 MHz 7.030 MHz 20m 14.290 MHz 14.070 MHz 17m 18.140 MHz 18.080 MHz 15m 21.360 MHz 21.140 MHz 12m 24.960 MHz 24.910 MHz 10m 28.990 MHz 28.190 MHz Also worth listening to in the UK 2m 144.325 MHz SSB 2m 145.325 MHz FM World Federation of Great Towers ================================ The World Federation of Great Towers (WFGT) is an organization in which large towers all over the world co-operate for special activities. It was founded in 1989 with the aim to stimulate communication and exchanges of all sort between the people of the world. The WFGT invites Scouts to take part in the JOTA from the top of their Towers. Amateur radio stations will be installed on the towers and professional communication facilities to contact the other towers will be made available also. The following towers are expected to take part: Centrepoint Tower in Sydney (Australia), Donauturm in Vienna (Austria), CN Tower in Toronto (Canada), Empire State Building in New York (USA), Tour Eiffel in Paris (France), Euromast in Rotterdam (Netherlands), Ostankino Tower in Moscow (Russia), Blackpool Tower in Blackpool (United Kingdom) and British Telecom Tower in London (United Kingdom). Some of these stations may use special call signs as well. It is usually planned to establish a television link between New York, Paris and Moscow at some time during the weekend. This will make it possible for the scouts at those towers to have a forum discussion. Further details are not yet known, but can be obtained from the World Bureau's radio station HB9S during the JOTA. -------------------------------- From: chris@scout.demon.co.uk (Christopher T Wilkinson) Subject: Network Russia After the downfall of the USSR, scout units are emerging again in all the former Soviet republics. Scout UK has launched several programs to help the development of scouting in Russia. One of the visible products of this project is a publication called Network Russia. Network Russia's goal is to encourage assistance to Russian Scouting and to ease relations and exchanges. You can get at least 3 copies of the printed edition each year by sending 2-50 to Network Russia, Oxfordshire County Scout Association, 22nd Oxford Scout HQ, Meadow Lane, Donnington, Oxford OX4 4BJ. To get a copy of the premium issue, ftp to ftp.ethz.ch and look in the directory /rec.scouting/misc/ for the file "network-russia-9306". -------------------------------- From: johnw@psychnet.psychol.utas.edu.au (John Wanless) Also-From: Bob Kenyon, Jan Pharo, Pam Backstrom, Bruce Cockburn, Dr J R Stockton et al. Subject: Re: Laws and Promises around the world Date: 12 Nov 1993 (update) Fellow Scouters, These are a listing of the Promise and Laws that have been posted to me and Rec.Scouting with corrections as at 1/11/93 [Plus additions as of 93/11/12 -- Ed.] Again I apologise in advance for any further mistakes and ask for copies of any variations that you can send me which I will post up in addition to these given. You can email me direct direct or post to Rec.Scouting. I am also missing the following, can anyone email these to me please, Australian Browie & Guide Laws & or promises Canadian Scout Laws Czech Scout Laws Finland Scout Laws Greek Scout Laws *** Australian Cub Promise (8-10 yrs) On my honour, I promise that I will do my best to do my duty to my God, and to the Queen of Australia to help other people, and to live by the Cub Scout Law *** Australian Scout Promise (10-14 yrs) (as from September 1st 1989) On my honour, I promise that I will do my best, to do my duty to my God, and to the Queen of Australia to help other people, and to live by the Scout Law *** Canadian Beaver Promise (5-7 yrs) I promise to love God and to help take care of the world *** Canadian Cub Promise (8-10 yrs) I promise to do my best to love and serve God to do my duty and to the Queen to keep the the law of the Wolf Cub pack and to do a good turn for someone every day *** Canadian Scout Promise (11-13 yrs) On my honour, I promise to do my best to love and serve God, my Queen, my country, and my fellow man, and to live by the Scout Law. *** Canadian Venturer Promise (14-17 yrs) On my honour I promise to develop myself so that I may better * love and serve God, * respect and help my fellowman, * honour and render service to my country. *** Canadian Rover/Scouter Promise On my honour, I promise to do my best To do my Duty to God and the Queen, To help other people at all times, And to carry out the spirit of the Scout Law. *** Chile Scout Promise I promise on my honor to do all that I can to do my duty to God and my Country, to help others at all times, and to obey the Scout Law. *** Czech Promise On my honour, I promise that I will do my best, to love my country, Republic of Czechoslovakia, and serve it faithfully in all times, to fulfil all my duties and keep the Scout Law, day & night to be ready to help my fellow men (God might help me to do so) *** Finland Promise I will love, my God and my fellowmen, my country and mankind, in my life I will carry out Scout ideals. *** Greek Promise On my honour I promise, to do my duty to God and the country, to help every person at all times, and to obey the Scout Law. . *** Norwegian Scout Promise I promise to do my best to serve God, help others and live according to the Scout Law. *** South African Promise On my honour, I promise that I will do my best, to do my duty to God and my country, to help other people at all times, and to obey the Scout Law. *** Swedish Scout Promise we have a scout promise that says (in english transation) I promise to do my best to follow the scout law. *** Swiss Scout Promise: I promise that I will do my best to live by the Scout Law. (optional addendum for religious scouts: I ask god and my friends to help me reach this goal). Important note: None of the two texts play an important role in the life of a swiss scout. A scout promise is considered as something very special. It is only meaningful if you really, really, really plan to keep that promise. It's a good guideline for the scout leader, though. In day-to-day life, a swiss scout learns to live by the law in a very natural way, by following the example of his/her leader and his/her companions. *** UK Scout Promise (B-P's original) On my honour I promise that I will do my best, to do my duty to God and the King, to help other people all the time, to obey the Scout Law. *** UK Scout Promise (current) On my honour, I promise that I will do my best to do my duty to God and to the Queen, to help other people and to keep the Scout Law. *** UK (?) Scout Promise (F.S.E.) (a European scouting body in Great Britain) On my honour I promise that I will do my best, to do my duty to God, the Queen, my country and Europe, to help other people at all times, and to obey the Scout Law. *** UK (?) Wolf Cub Promise (F.S.E.) I promise to do my best, To do my duty to God, the Queen, my Country and Europe, To keep the law of the Wolf Cub Pack, And be helpful each and every day. *** USA Promise (Boy Scouts of America) On my honor, I will do my best, to do my duty, to God and my country, and to obey the Scout Law, to help other people at all times, to keep myself physically strong , mentally awake, and morally straight. *** USA Promise (Girl Scouts of the USA) On my Honor, I will try to serve God and my country to help people at all times and to live by the Girl Scout Law *** Australian Cub Scout Laws Cub Scouts are loyal and obedient Cub Scouts do not give in to themselves *** Australian Scout Laws A Scout is trustworthy A Scout is loyal A Scout is helpful A Scout is friendly A Scout is cheerful A Scout is considerate A Scout is thrifty A Scout is courageous A Scout is respectful A Scout cares for the environment *** Chile Scout Law The Scout places his honor in being worthy of trust. The Scout is loyal. The Scout is useful and helps others, without thinking of compensation. The Scout is a friend to all and a brother to any Scout. The Scout is courteous and gentlemanly. The Scout loves Nature and protects animals and plants. The Scout smiles and sings in difficult times. The Scout is obedient. The Scout is thrifty. The Scout is clean and pure in thought, word and deed. *** Norwegian Scout Law A Scout is open to God and His word; A Scout accepts responsibility for himself and others; A Scout is helpful and conciderate; A Scout is a good friend; A Scout is honest and thrustworthy; A Scout knows and protects the Nature; A Scout thinks and acts independently, and tries to understand other people; A Scout does his best in difficulties and troubles; A Scout is thrifty; A Scout works for peace and understanding between people. ('himself' also means 'herself') *** South African Scout Law Our actual laws are based on an abbreviated version of the British laws: 1. A Scout's Honour is to be trusted 2. A Scout is loyal. 3. A Scout's duty is to be useful and to help others 4. A Scout is a friend to all and a brother to every other Scout 5. A Scout is courteous 6. A Scout is a friend to animals 7. A Scout obeys orders 8. A Scout smiles and whistles under all difficulties 9. A Scout is thrifty 10. A Scout is clean in thought, word and deed. We use a rhyme to remember the laws: "Trusty, loyal, helpful, Brotherly, courteous, kind, Obedient, Smiling, Thrifty, Clean in body and mind" *** Swiss Scout Law (english translation, with no warranties) A scout is honest towards him-/herself and the others A scout stands to his/her belief [whichever it is] and respects the belief of others. A scout takes care of the nature and all living beings A scout helps wherever he/she can A scout is a good companion A scout keeps his/her self-control A scout can integrate him-/herself in the community A scout overcomes difficulties with humor A scout can renounce A scout is ready [willing] to take responsibility. *** UK Scout Law 1. A Scout is to be trusted. 2. A Scout is loyal. 3. A Scout is friendly and considerate. 4. A Scout belongs to the world-wide family of Scouts. 5. A Scout has courage in all difficulties. 6. A Scout makes good use of time and is careful of possessions and property. 7. A Scout has self-respect and respect for others. *** UK Cub Law Cub Scouts always do their best, think of others before themselves and do a good turn every day. *** UK (& other?) Cub Law (F.S.E.) The Cub honours his parents and obeys his leaders, Always does his best and is a friend to all. *** UK (& other?) Scout Law (F.S.E.) 1. A Scout's honour is to be trusted. 2. A Scout is loyal to his Queen, his Country, his Scouters, his Parents, his Employers, and those under him 3. A Scout's duty is to be useful and to help others. 4. A Scout is a friend to all, and a brother to every other Scout, no matter to what country, class or creed the other belongs. 5. A Scout is courteous. 6. A Scout is a friend to animals and to all other created things. 7. A Scout obeys the orders of his parents, Patrol Leader, or Scout Master without question. 8. A Scout smiles and whistles under all difficulties. 9. A Scout is thrifty. 10. A Scout is clean in thought, word and deed. *** USA Scout Law (Boy Scouts of America) A Scout is... Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverent. *** USA Scout Law (Girl Scouts of the USA) I will do my best: to be honest to be fair to help where I am needed to be cheerful to be friendly and considerate to be a sister to every Girl Scout to respect authority to use resources wisely to protect and improve the world around me to show respect for myself and other through my words and actions *** Rover Prayer By the spirits of the just, Made perfect in their suffering, Teach us in our turn Oh Lord, To serve thee as we aught, To give and not to count the cost, To fight and not to heed the wounds, To toil and not to seek for rest, To labour and not to seek for any reward, Save that of knowing that we do thy will. -------------------------------- End of FAQ #2 --------------------------------