Posted on 09/10/2007 12:35:34 PM PDT by SandRat
SIERRA VISTA — Boy Scout leader James Larsen of the Catalina Council’s Cochise District made the trip last month to the 100th anniversary of Scouting jamboree in southern England.
The theme of the Scouting’s century celebration was “One World, One Promise.” Larsen said about 36,000 scouts and adult leaders attended the event to join in the spirit international unity.
Six scouts from the Catalina Council went, all from the Tucson area.
On Aug. 1, 1907, Robert Baden-Powell organized the first Scouting for Boys camping event at Poole Harbour in southern England. It is recognized as the origin of the worldwide Boy Scouts movement that continues today.
At Brownsea Island Scout Camp, Aug. 1, 2007, the nine-day 100th anniversary jamboree began, with 156 nations represented.
“It was like a big camporee,” Larsen said.
All of the nations represented had an option at staffing an international tent to feature their cultures for the benefit of people from other nations. The United States’ site featured historic and cultural activities such as roping, gold panning, as well as a display representing the multicultural background of the U.S. population.
On a global level, Scouting is largely gender integrated these days, Larsen said. Most nations have already brought both boys and girls into their scouting institutions.
“The United States is in a significant minority because in most places Scouting is co-ed from the beginning (ranks),” Larsen said.
The future of Boy Scouts of America will likely follow suit with a policy of gender integration, but exactly when is not yet certain, Larsen said.
About 40 percent of those in attendance at the centennial jamboree were female Scouts or Scout leaders, he said.
Scouting in Britain was officially gender integrated about five years ago, but the practice was already well under way by the time it was official, Larsen said.
Another underlying theme at the celebration was encouraging conservation and Earth-friendly living.
“There was a significant emphasis on green culture — recycling, renewable resources and other things along those lines because we have both developing countries that were represented and we also have developed nations,” Larsen said.
The “One World, One Promise” theme illustrated an internationally collaborative spirit of gender, religion and responsibility with respect to the environment, one’s society and culture, Larsen said.
“We are all a body of Scouts,” he said. “Everybody said their own promise in their own language, but it’s the same general and specific promise to our country and to the same general and specific superior being that we all believe in.”
The Scouting creed is essentially the same in every language, including a dedication to work, skills and knowledge tailored to the outdoors and emphasizing a duty to one’s society.
“These are things that everybody’s going to learn no matter where you are in the world,” Larsen said.
Larsen said the tent he used at the jamboree is now on its way to South Africa, as was much of the centenary jamboree gear, from nations already well established to countries newer to Scouting.
“Much of the developed world gave much of the materials used at the jamboree to the Eastern European countries that are still developing in their Scouting since the fall of the Iron Curtain,” Larsen said.
Scouting organizations from around the world weren’t at the jamboree for recognition or competition.
“You go for the fellowship, for the camaraderie, the social exchange,” he said.
The Boy Scouts of America will celebrate its 100th birthday in 2011 during a jamboree at Fort A.P. Hill, Va. The same attendance numbers are expected at that celebration, and Larsen plans to be there, too.
Arizona’s Catalina Council, which is headquartered in Tucson, consists of all the Boy Scout troops in Santa Cruz, Pima and Cochise counties. There are about 100 Boy Scout troops in the Cochise District.
The remainder of Arizona’s scout troops fall under the Grand Canyon Council.
Like much of the culture in Southern Arizona, international Scouting plays a part locally as well. Larsen noted a particular tradition of some 40-plus years between Scouts on either side of the U.S.-Mexico border.
“We here in Southern Arizona do international scouting with Sonora, Mexico. Every two years we have a Pimaree, and we alternate in hosting it,” he said.
The next Pimaree is in 2008.
Herald/Review reporter Gentry Braswell can be reached at 515-4680 or by e-mail at gentry.braswell@svherald.com.
One boy scout(eagle)from my small town attended - he phoned his dad early on saying he was having the best time of his life. He is going to be the den chief for my son’s bear den - hopefully he’ll tell us all about it.
Good for you and he. All the boys, and adults should get excited to hear all that he says. You may find these helpfull in telling the Den and the Pack about all that went on at the Jamboree http://eng.thejamboree.org/
This is wonderful to hear good news about the Boy Scouts.
To the politically correct crowd, the Boy Scouts are a useless organization because they are “homophobic”. According to those people, all the good that the Boy Scouts do is canceled out because of banning homosexual leaders.
The President is normally the honorary chairman of the Boy Scouts. I wonder if Hillary will refuse same, based on the “discrimination” practiced by the Boy Scouts.
An Eagle Scout who was a member of our Cub Scout Pack is there as well.
The President of the United States in his role as Honorary President of the BSA signs (probably autopen, but ...) all Eagle Scout certificates. Back when her husband was President and after his "I did not have sex with that woman" was shown to be a lie, numerous Eagle Scouts (or their parents) sent their certificates back and asked for a copy that did not have his signature on it. Their wish was accomodated. I don't know if that's still an option.
If memory serves me (and I could be wrong), first the White House announced that President Clinton would not sign Eagle Scout certificates. Then, after a brief uproar, Bill Clinton began to sign them . . . however, for the first time in history, not only did the President sign them, but also the First Lady (yes, I believe HC signed them as well). Will someone with a clearer memory than me please let me know if my that is correct?
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