What a fantastic morning. The sun was out and the rain from the day before was no where to seen. This is the first Clean Up Australia Day that we have held as a group. We had a total of 32 Cubs, Leaders, Scouts and Parent Helpers at the event. This is a great effort for the first one. The location was Alexander Clark Park in Loganholme, QLD. It is an excellent park and a great place to just have a fun morning.
The cubs were lined up and ready to go, they had their bags and their gloves. After a safety brief we broke into 3 groups and headed off around the park. I for one enjoyed meandering through the scrub, along the river, following enthusiastic cubs as they went about picking up rubbish and bottles.
Cubs found some interesting items, such as a golf hat, golf ball, 2 baby car seats, some concrete, old pipes and wiring. We had to remind people that the floods, in January, may have washed them down river and embedded them in the trees.
For a group of young cubs, for them to come along and be prepared to pick up after people, made me a proud Cub Leader. I am so impressed with this group today, as not once did they complain about having to do the job. Surprising too, the time past quickly and an hour was gone before we knew it.Plus we were all very surprised at how clean the park actually was. We expected a lot more rubbish, but to our surprise it was minimal. But it was just a great chance to be out of the den for a change.
After returning to the start point. the cubs were given lollipops, marshmallows and sour lollies for being part of the day. They will also receive a certificate on Tuesday for attending the day. But the most important part, is that the cubs that attended are all one step closer to completing the World Scouting Environment Badge. Well done Cubs.
I want to thank the parents who stayed behind today and assisted. It is great to see so many wanting to come along and pitch in on such a great day. It is also great for us leaders to have time with you also. I noticed after the event that the general conversations that were held were great for our section and group building, I believe for the first time in a long while, we are functioning as a complete unit and getting a chance to know you all better. Thank you for a great day and the positive feedback you were providing too.
Finally, a big thank you must go out to Bert van Manen, the Federal Liberal Member for Forde. His team provided 24 bottles of water, that went down very well. This was unexpected and very much appreciated.
Until next Tuesday,
Bagheera (Stephen Hughes)
