1st East Grinstead Scout Group
Centenary 1908 - 2008
Centenary 1908 -
1977 Buckhurst’s French Visitors
Transcript of E G Courier 23 Jun 1977
CUBS HOST VISIT BY FRENCH COUNTERPARTS
CUBS HOST VISIT BY FRENCH COUNTERPARTS
RECIPROCATING a visit made to Dieppe two years ago, the 1st East Grinstead (Buckhurst) Cub Pack were hosts to 12 boys and three leaders from the Yere Meutre de Dieppe at their weekend camp held on the Crawley and District Scout Camp site at Pease Pottage. The French boys were met at Newhaven and taken in the 1st East Grinstead lorry, the "Guv Bug" to the camp site. Two French boys were assigned to each of the Buckhurst sixes and despite the language barrier, all inhibitions were soon cast aside and the boys found a way of getting on famously.
During the weekend, activities included games, tug-of-war, mini-pioneering and, of course, a joint singsong around the camp fire. The camp site was dominated by specially erected twin flag pole bearing , the flags of both countries. On the Sunday morning, a Cubs Own service was held around this, and the Buckhurst Cub Scout Leader, Richard Dodson, who organised the weekend read a passage from Baden Powell's Scouting for Boys on international brotherhood, and endeavoured to translate it into French as he went along.
There is no doubt that a lasting association between the two Packs has been cemented and the Buckhurst Pack have now received an invitation to camp in France next summer
