EUROPA – 100 YEARS OF SCOUTING

Motifs: Emblem of the World Scout Movement and dove as symbol of peace Scout neckerchief The foundation stone of scouting was laid in the long-past year 1907, when on the island of Brownsea in Great Britain twenty-two boys, together with their leader, the founder of scouting, Sir Robert Baden-Powell, organized the first trial scouts’ camp and in this way initiated the movement that was to spread all over the world. Sir Baden-Powell came upon the idea about the founding of the scouts’ movement from his practical life experience. He wanted to contribute to the education of children and the young outside the school framework, by working and living in nature where all of them could participate, mutually cooperate and help each other. Learning about nature and spending their time there they learned how to plan their leaving for nature, pitch tents (shelters), light fires, prepare food, ... This means they learned how to survive in nature. Apart from the basic accomplishments, the scouts learned about signalling, reading and creating maps (that would help them to orientate in space), they learned about hygiene, giving first aid and the like. Every scout had to be responsible to himself and to others, attentive, true, honourable, courageous, cheerful and economical. Scouting has been successfully promoting peace and goodwill up to the present time. The scouting movement has very soon spread among the young of the world. Consequently, in the course of the year 1913, in Croatia Scholar Excursion Societies were established in high schools with their members being called scouts. The Croatian Scouting Association was founded in Zagreb in 1914. This association stopped their activity in 1918. In 1921 the Association of Scouts and Girl Scouts was established and they later changed their name into the Association of Scouts of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The World Organization of the Scout Movement – WOSM or the World Scout Movement was founded next year and the Association of Scouts and Girl Scouts became its member. At the beginning of the Second World War the Scout Association of Croatia stopped its activity and the scouting organization was newly established in 1952 and since then bears the name Scout Association of Croatia (the Croatian acronym SIH stands for Savez izviđača Hrvatske). The Scout Association of Croatia renewed their membership in the WOSM in 1993. The vision of the Scout Association of Croatia is to become an organization that would help young persons in their choice of their own way of life by discovering and experiencing the world through living in nature. Nowadays national scout organizations are active in 216 countries all over the world and embrace 28 million members into the big family called the World Scout Movement which represents the largest membership of the youth movement in the world. In our country the Scout Association of Croatia numbers more than 4600 members and thus represents the largest national organization of civil society that is engaged in extra-institutional education and training of children and the young. By their activities they endeavour to help the young to become included in processes of reaching decisions in all the areas of contemporary society. The fundamental goal of scouting is the development of creativity, knowledge and skills of children and the young as the chief prerequisite of their mutual understanding and tolerance as well as their contribution to their life environment. It is also their intention to imbue children and the young with a deep-felt consciousness about nature, its significance for all of us and to teach them how to live and act in harmony with it. The scout movement is open for everyone who strives with their activities to achieve the Association’s goals, implementing principles and methods created by the founder of the scouts’ movement regarding the development of physical, intellectual and spiritual potentials of young people as individuals, responsible citizens and members of local, national and international communities. By purchasing the postage stamp issued on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of scouting you will join the generations that have turned children and young people into successful and happy people. The motifs on the stamps represent the following: ? The emblem of the World Scout Movement consists of the fleur-de-lis with a magnetic needle, two stars and ring. The rope is encircled round the lily tied with a reef knot. The three tips of the emblem, like in the emblem of the Scout Association of Croatia, represent the three main parts of the scouts’ duties: service to others, duty to God and obedience to the Scout Law (fulfilling the scouts’ laws and promises). The magnetic needle symbolizes the true way to go in life. Two stars symbolize truth and knowledge and each of the ten points on the stars stand for one of the scouts’ promises. The ring holding the emblem represents the unity and brotherhood of the scouts’ movement. The reef knot on the rope stands for the power of this unity because this knot cannot be undone. ? The dove motif – the symbol of peace – as a reminder of the significant contribution of scouting to the advancement of peace in the world. ? The scout neckerchief is an object that makes scouts identifiable and every scout in the world wears it round the neck. It is tied into a friendship knot (this knot is tied for a scout by his friend and it is never untied). The neckerchief on the postage stamp is white with a red edge and represents the official neckerchief of the Scout Association of Croatia. At the end we are going to quote the last words of the founder of the scout movement that should show all of us the true way: The only right way to get happiness is by trying to give happiness to other people. Try and leave this world a little better than you found it and when your turn comes to die you can die happy in feeling that at any rate you have not wasted your time but have done your best. “Be prepared” in this way, to live happy and to die happy – stick to your Scout Promise always – even when you have grown up – and God will help you to do it.