The Guides New Zealand Story


Note: I originally typed this out for a GSUSA friend and it was posted on my behalf,
(I was having a bad mail day :) ), to the Scout-Girl-L mailing list (now WAGGGS-L)
Volume 01 : Issue 14 on Fri, 4 Nov 94

The comments with my original e-mail were:
"After reading the Juliette Lowe story recently I thought I would post you the similar one we use. It was published in our national magazine Te Rama many years ago. This works well at a campfire and could easily be personalised to suit most countries by exchanging the New Zealand references and dates. It's great for Thinking Day as well!"

The Beginning of Guiding (Action Story)

Divide your unit up into the following groups and individuals and have them practice their action. As you read the story pause as the actions, or words or sounds are made.

The Story

On February 22, 1857, Robert Baden-Powell was born in England. This man was later to become famous under the name of B.P., as the founder of SCOUTS and GUIDES. He spent a number of years in a boarding school and when he was 18 he joined the ARMY. As a soldier Baden-Powell travelled to many countries including AFRICA and INDIA. He became famous during the Boer War as a colonel in the ARMY. After the Boer War, B.P. returned to ENGLAND where he found that many of the books he had written for the ARMY were being used by teachers and other youth leaders to help them in their work with boys. He decided to try out his own ideas and held a camp on Brownsea Island with a group of London boys. These boys were later to become the first SCOUTS. The girls of that day seeing what fun their brothers were having, decided they would like to become SCOUTS. Soon patrols of girls calling themselves such things as lions, tigers, and vultures sprung up all over ENGLAND.

In 1909 Baden-Powell invited all the SCOUTS of ENGLAND to a parade at Crystal Palace in London. This huge building was actually made of glass. B.P. stood at the front of the building and saluted all the SCOUTS as they marched in. Imagine his surprise when he saw a group of girls coming along at the end. He was not very pleased but did allow them to enter the building. When he was later inspecting the SCOUTS he also inspected the girls. He asked them what they wanted and they said that they too would like to join his movement. Baden-Powell said that his game was for boys only, but he would see what could be done. At home he thought about the girls and talked about them with his sister Agnes Baden-Powell. The result was not girl scouts but GIRL GUIDES. In NEW ZEALAND Colonel Cossgrove, a friend of Baden-Powell's in the ARMY, started the Peace SCOUTS in 1908 and their younger sisters, Fairy SCOUTS in 1918. In 1923 they changed their khaki and white uniforms for blue and brown ones and became GUIDES and BROWNIES.

Guiding and Scouting quickly spread throughout the WORLD and soon there were GUIDES and SCOUTS not only in ENGLAND and NEW ZEALAND but in AFRICA, INDIA and many other countries.

B.P. left the ARMY and devoted all his time to Scouting and Guiding. He travelled constantly and on one voyage he met Miss Olave St. Clair Soames. He fell in love with her (WHISTLE), and she became his wife. Olave Baden-Powell later became WORLD Chief GUIDE. She was affectionately known to GUIDES all over the world as LADY B.P.. LORD B.P. and LADY B.P. were both born on February 22nd. A Belgian Guider suggested that we make this a special day and it became Thinking Day. (The SCOUTS call it Founder's Day). On Thinking Day we remember the GUIDES and BROWNIES all over the WORLD.

B.P. died in 1941 in AFRICA. On his tombstone is the tracking sign for "I have gone home".

The WORLD Chief GUIDE, LADY B.P. carried on the work of the Founder, travelling all over the WORLD inspiring groups of SCOUTS and GUIDES wherever she went. She visited NEW ZEALAND in 1948 and 1967. LADY B.P. died peacefully in her sleep on 25 June 1977 in Surrey, ENGLAND, and is buried with her husband in AFRICA.

Aren't we lucky to be part of the WORLD association of Girl GUIDES and Girl SCOUTS!

Notes:
The actions above are the very traditional actions. When we do this we use actions I learned when I first joined Guiding in the 1980's.
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