|
|
Christmas Edition 2003 No. 12EditorialQuite a lot has happened at the Fourth since the Summer newsletter, in particular, the Group's 70th Anniversary Dinner Dance at Morden Park and then a visit to the Headquarters by the Chief Scout. We've had several letters, particularly from those whose Scouting at Worcester Park began in the early days. We are most grateful for these and would welcome comments from across the spectrum of Friends. Don't forget you can e-mail us at fotf (at) 4wp.org.uk as well as writing or telephoning us. Details are at the end of the newsletter. As always, please do encourage former members of the Group with whom you are still in touch to join the Friends - £2 per year is their only commitment. We wish you and your families a very Happy Christmas and health and prosperity in the New Year. 70th AnniversaryWe are enclosing with this newsletter the Group's 70th Anniversary booklet which we hope you will find of great interest. As so many of you send donations to the Group, we are not asking for a donation towards the cost of this, unless, of course, you so wish! Chief Scout's VisitWe were very pleased and honoured that the Chief Scout, George Purdy, accepted an invitation to visit the Group in its 70th year. Our programme kicked off with a campfire in the campfire circle which the Chief happily joined in with. We then had some presentations of awards and a short address from the Chief following which the Beavers left us. The Cubs then took part in activity bases in the Apeldoorn building while the Scouts set up activities in the main hall. The Chief visited all of these and joined in, chatting to as many people as he could. He chatted with boys about football, took on a Cub Scout at Connect 4 and watched some of Silver Troop's Summer Camp film. The Cubs then left us while the Scouts continued and they then left leaving the Leaders and the Chief to enjoy a social gathering. We were very impressed with the Chief who is a most delightful man who seemed just as much at home chatting to the youngest Beaver as he was with the more senior citizens amongst us - his Northern Ireland background probably helped! It was a very successful evening and we were very grateful to the Chief for spending time with us. 70th Anniversary Fun Day Some 120 Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers attended the 70th Anniversary Fun Day at the headquarters in July which they all thoroughly enjoyed. The event took quite a lot of organising and the day was very hot but it was worth all the trouble to see so many boys enjoying themselves. The behaviour of the boys was exemplary, in particular the Scouts who helped the younger boys get from event to event and sometimes with the events themselves. There were 15 events the boys had to sample ranging from blindfold trails to an aerial runway. The Group Fellowship managed to feed a hot meal to some 160+ people in a two-hour period in very hot conditions! Dinner DanceOver 100 folk gathered at the Restaurant-in-the-Park at Morden Park for the 70th Anniversary Dinner Dance in July. We were pleased to see so many old friends. After the dinner and usual formalities, Peter Kinton spoke of the 70 years of Scouting in Worcester Park, while Bob Prescott (District Commissioner for Wimbledon) gave an insight into the future of Scouting. The Master-of Ceremonies was Group Scout Leader, Keith Daly. Spotlight on Brownsea Cub Scout PackMany of you will know the current Brownsea Pack as "B" Pack from when it was first formed in 1951. The then existing Pack split into two, and Dorothy Salter became Akela of "A" Pack, while Tom Quick became Akela of "B" Pack. The renaming of the Packs took place when we opened a third Pack in the 1970's to become not "C" Pack, but Charterhouse, with "A" becoming Anglia and "B" becoming Brownsea. "B" Pack has only had five Akelas in its 52-year history. Following Mr Quick, the then Assistant Cubmaster, Mrs Catriona Hunter, became Akela. Mrs Hunter was concurrently Secretary at Cheam Common School, and on her untimely death, the Pack came into the care of Sheila Kinton who was Akela from 1964 until 1995. On Sheila's retirement, Hazel Richardson took over followed this year by Les Prescott, the Pack's fifth Akela. The Pack has benefited from having a strong tradition. Many of the activities and the style of camping can be traced back to Mr Quick's time. The Pack has always had a strong belief in training Cubs for Scout camping and has always camped under canvas in a field with a tap. In the early days the Pack camped at Send. For many years following the Pack camped on the Albury Estate near Shere and then on a ideal site on a farm near Farley Green, south of Shere. In recent years the camps have been held in a field surrounded by woods near Oxted. News from MembersWe have received many letters and here are some highlights: From Richard Duck:What a "blast from the past" to be reminded about Alan Wagstaff and the two old friends from Longfellow Road. It is amazing where these long forgotten names appear from. Just two years ago I was ordering drinks at the Plough, Old Malden, and got chatting to an elderly "regular". He turned out to be Don Rickards, together with his younger brother Tony. They were in the Fourth at the same time as me! You may recall my father "Jack" Duck who was, I believe, quite a stalwart of the 4th and was particularly involved in fund raising at fetes and the like in the late 1940's to launch the first rebuild of the HQ hut. From Jeff Vernon ("Hippo")Great to hear that the Group is as strong as ever and that many older members are still around and very active. Please remember me to the gang, especially any members of my old Badger Patrol. From Tony HadfieldMany thanks for the latest newsletter. My sister (Betty) was very interested to hear that you had recently met Jessie Killick. Betty was an Assistant Cub Leader in the 4th, working with Mr Quick in "B" Pack and it appears that she was in the Group at the same time as Jessie - also they were both Sea Rangers together. May I say how interesting it is to receive the newsletter - the contents of which always bring back great memories from the 15 years I spent with the Group. I will be meeting some old Scouting friends at a 50th Reunion of the Cuddington Youth Club. Richard Duck, who is one of the main organisers, informs me that Martin Olney, Mick White, Rob Guille, Mick Pryke, Alan Rush are proposing to attend, plus Tony Burrage is travelling from Australia for the occasion. Please send my regards to all who know me at the 4th. From Betty Farrow (nee Hadfield)(Betty wrote three days after returning home from hospital). I remember we had the Gang Shows at the Sutton Public Hall and then at the Headquarters. I remember my Dad (Fred Hadfield - "Cheetah") and Ron Kinton ("Grey Owl") doing the Sand dance. At one of the Sutton shows, Joan Crawford and I did the scene dressing Paul Dovey, Mickey White etc. in the Flower Fairy Dance! Just goes to show, I may have been in hospital, but the memories are really good. My beloved mother - bless her heart - did all the 4th Worcester Park scarves on her little hand sewing machine. I still have my 4th WP flag and my belt with knife and Gilwell stamp. From Jenny Green (nee Rush)Just to let you know that Dad (Bill Rush) has now moved into a residential home in East Horsley, very near to us in Great Bookham. He didn't want to give up his independence, but in the end it was his decision as he knew he couldn't return to no. 30. He is now 94 and it is a lovely home. (As most will know, Mr Rush was Ground Warden at headquarters from the time of the War until only very recently). From Maurice WilkinsMany of our old friends are regularly mentioned in the newsletter and it's nice to keep up with what's going on. Health-wise, things continue to be good for me and all my check-ups have been clear. Normal routines therefore carry on and we are getting in plenty of cycling, gym work and other activities. Our thespian ambitions continue apace and I have now had a number of good parts in both plays and musicals, while Rita spends many happy hours making, repairing and hiring costumes. Unfortunately, Rita's health suffered somewhat when she tried a novel way of coming down stairs by avoiding the last half dozen or so steps! She suffered a broken knee joint and then had a leg in plaster for two months and then encased in a jointed brace for another month. Although she is still very much in need of crutches she is making rapid strides. It is our 40th Anniversary this year, and we'd rather she spent our Anniversary in some exotic location than undergoing another operation! Otherwise she is very well and prior to the accident was enjoying riding around the country lanes on the bike with me. Any of our old friends passing this way are welcome to drop in . Meanwhile, our best wishes to everyone and good luck to the Group.
Coming EventsThe Group has a full programme of events as usual, and you are cordially invited to attend all of them. See the Calendar page for more details. E-Mail AddressesAll e-mail correspondence for Friends of the Fourth should be addressed to: fotf(at)4wp.org.uk
This page was last updated on 28 December 2003 |