2nd Peterborough St. Luke’s Scouting is partnering with Rainbarrel.ca with an environmentally friendly rain barrel sale in order to fundraise towards a group trip to Mexico in 2014. All barrels are made from recycled food grade barrels and help purchasers save on their metered water costs by collecting rainwater that is healthier for gardens than watering with chlorinated municipal water, and also allows homeowners to water their gardens at their own convenience despite municipal watering restrictions. You can order yours online for $50 by clicking here.
St. Luke’s Scouts has been established for over 100 years in East City, Peterborough, and their co-ed youth programs for ages five and up continues to be very active with an emphasis on getting the youth “out” in “scouts” and away from digital media. In 2014, a group of Scouts, Venturers, Rovers and adult leaders are planning a group trip to Mexico to return a visit with Mexican youth that spent 2 1/2 weeks in Peterborough in 2013 as part of St. Luke’s centenary celebration.
Venturer Chris Hewett, a grade 10 student who has been in scouting for eight years, is looking forward to the 2014 trip. Through scouting he’s been able to travel to Germany and Sweden for the 2011 World Scout Jamboree; a once-in-a-lifetime experience he says would not have been accessible without donations and vigorous fundraising. To reach the 2014 Mexican trip goal, a fundraising committee of youth, leaders and parents at St Luke’s have been busy with a number of endeavors including grocery bagging, metal recycling, pizza couponning, plant and pumpkin sales, and a movie night — all part of a two year plan to make the trip accessible to any group youth who would like to attend.
The beneficial influence of experience in scouting is clearly apparent in Hewett, who received his Chief Scouts Award in 2011 and is an active volunteer with the younger scouting groups. In order to achieve the Chief Scout Award, he had to complete a variety of tasks that build on citizenship and personal development, beyond the usual badge work requirements. In his own words, Hewett feels that scouting “builds good character for young boys and girls and creates building blocks for a long successful life,” and enjoys the opportunities his travels have provided to meet new people and make life-long friends from other parts of Canada and the world.
“This fundraiser is especially relevant to this trip” says parent/organizer Jeannine Crowe. “In Ontario, it’s very easy to take clean drinking water for granted — we live in a country with one of the largest amounts of fresh water in the world, and we use it to wash cars and water our lawns.” The youth visiting Mexico will be experiencing very different conditions and won’t be able to assume that water will be safe to drink from the tap, and that water supply may be limited for bathing as well.
To support the trip, rain barrels are $50 each and can be ordered online by clicking here, and are to be picked up Friday, May 10th from 3:30 PM to 7:00 PM and Saturday, May 11th from 8:30 AM to 12:00 PM at The Canadian Canoe Museum, 901 Monaghan Rd. (between Romaine & Lansdowne), Peterborough, ON.
Each rain barrel comes fully equipped with a leaf and mosquito filter basket, an overflow adapter that permits multiple barrels to be connected in series, 1.2m of overflow hose and a spigot that attaches directly to a garden hose. Delivery is available within Peterborough or Lakefield for a small additional
donation.
For more information, please visit www.rainbarrel.ca/StLukesScouts or contact Jeannine Crowe by phone: 705 741 5236 or email: [email protected].
