On Thursday evening, 14 November, the Graaff Reinet Scouts Troop held its 112th Annual General Meeting (AGM), a gathering that proved to be both meaningful and memorable.
𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆.
The AGM was marked by a deep sense of gratitude, particularly for the leadership of Jacques Ferreira and Johan Vorster, who have admirably stepped up to guide the troop following the passing of Mr Bruce Maree in December 2022.
𝘔𝘳 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦’𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘤𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 50 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘑𝘢𝘤𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘑𝘰𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.
The evening also held bittersweet moments, especially as the troop bid farewell to matric learner Josh Neill. In his farewell address, Josh shared inspiring words about the essence of scouting and the invaluable lessons learned under the Scout banner. His message resonated with the younger scouts, reminding them that even as members transition out of the troop, their influence and inspiration continue to shape the next generation.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗚𝗠 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗰𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘂𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹-𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀. Each accolade reflects the passion and commitment of the individuals within the troop. The 2024 awards were presented as follows:
𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦.
As the Graaff Reinet Scouts Troop looks forward to the adventures that await in the coming year, there is a palpable excitement in the air – the troop is grateful for the opportunity to be part of such a meaningful journey and they are eager to continue fostering growth, learning and camaraderie in the spirit of scouting.