DISTRICT DINNER

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32846, 21 February 1972, Page 12

DISTRICT DINNER

Queen's Scouts

honoured

The Rata scout district (Christchurch) held its first dinner on Friday evening at the Blue Skies centre, Kaiapoi, to honour the dsitrict’s seven Queen’s Scouts and holders of the Chief Scout’s award. The district commissioner (Mr R. J. C. Crichton) welcomed as special guests the Mayor of Christchurch (Mr N. G. Pickering) and Mrs Pickering, the Canterbury area commissioner (Mr H. Millard) and Mrs Millard, and the Dean of Christchurch (the Very Rev. M. Underhill) and Mrs Underhill.

Acknowledging his early membership—as a cub in Glasgow, then as a scoutmaster during his curacy— Dean Underhill paid a tribute to the movement, which he said the public often considered old-fashioned, but which laid first-class foundations of a sense of duty and responsibility, and also taught the enjoyment of life to the full. Mr Pickering said it was important that young men and women were helped to play their part in the community. This was a time of a great society, with chairs at universities for many subjects, but he had never heard of a chair of citizenship. This was left to parents, but if they could not, or would not, teach citizenship to their children, scouting could, and did, cover all aspects of it. Holders of the Queen’s Scout and Chief Scout’s awards were an example of young men who had dedicated themselves to achieve standards in citizenship, leadership and self-reliance, Mr Pickering said.