From the Chief Commissioner
Hi everyone, hope you are having a great month!
Well, we are about to start another exciting year of Scouting in Queensland
I trust all members and their families have had an enjoyable break over the summer and are ready to return to a fun filled year of great Scouting activities.
Can I highlight the opportunity of AJ2025. Applications for the Jamboree are open. We would love for you and your young person to consider expressing interest in attending what will be a major event, now less than 12 months away. Applications need to be lodged by 31 March 2024. As I have indicated previously it is critically important that we encourage as many youth members and adults as possible to attend. The intent is to provide the opportunity at Jamboree for those who missed out in 2022 by extending the invitation to Venturer Scouts to 16 years of age to attend as participants or support workers.
It is also important that our youth members understand that the next Jamboree is not until 2029. So please encourage your unit to consider how they can participate in this wonderful Scouting event. The link to apply is here.
New Zealand Jamboree
Over the holiday period we have had Scouts and Venturer Scouts participate in the New Zealand Scout Jamboree (32 attendees) and Venture 24 (62 attendees). I can report all had a fantastic time experiencing two wonderful events that highlight the exciting opportunities Scouting provides to young people and adults. You may have followed these events on Facebook – where you would have seen numerous photos of young people having a great time!
My heartfelt thanks to all the adult volunteers who gave of their time to ensure the success of these events.
The events above are a clear demonstration of the value and opportunities Scouting provides young people. I encourage you and your young person to talk to your friends and family members, who may not be members of Scouting and ask them would they like to come and try Scouting for themselves.
A new initiative for this year has been the creation of a new dynamic Branch Calendar via SharePoint – there is a link below that will allow you to access the calendar and search for events/activities across the whole branch. This dynamic version of the calendar is ‘live’ and accurate at all times and has more search capability across the Branch. This calendar also incorporates our training courses for 2024. The link is here.
The 2024 SharePoint Branch Calendar is part of a wider effort to better support all members. It is one part of a wider member platform that will shortly see the introduction of the QLD Branch Member Information Library & Intranet – which we like to call MILI.
Stay tuned over the coming months as MILI comes to life!
I hope you and your young people have a great Scouting year full of Adventure, Fun Challenge, and inclusive activities.
Have a great month and good Scouting!