By: Aaron D’Souza
Top: Felipe Gasparino, Alex Dang, Dylan Book and Michael Hryhoriw
Bottom: Hilary Cheng, Jennifer Wu, Sophia Yip (Crew President), John Chow (Head Advisor), Jeannie Chan, Violet Tam
On Sunday, April 7, 2013, 8 of our Rover Scouts went through the investiture ceremony of the 180th Pacific Coast Scout Group. For 6 of the Rover Scouts who were invested, it was a very meaningful experience because it was their first time attending a traditional Scouting ceremony since they had no Scouting experience prior to joining the group. Investiture was held at Stanley Park from 5 AM to 10 AM – just in time to catch the beautiful sunrise. Accompanying the new Rover Scouts on this important journey of their Scouting lives were 16 junior and senior Rover Scouts, Advisors, and the current and past presidents of our Scout Group.
Our investiture ceremony could be compared to the “rite of passage” rituals that many cultural and religious traditions of the world celebrate to signify the transition of an individual or group of people to a higher level of responsibility and maturity. The Bar Mitzvah of the Jewish tradition is an example of one such religious tradition and graduating from university is another more universal rite-of-passage ceremony.
Our Rover Scouts are only allowed to participate in the investiture ceremony once they have passed their probationary period within our Scout Group. During the typical 3 to 6 month probationary period, our newest members have to demonstrate strict adherence to our Scout Group’s values (PERSIST – Passion, Excellence Respect, Support, Integrity, Scouting Principles, and Trust) and a sincere contribution to our Group, our goals, and to their own personal development.
This is very similar to employees in the corporate world showing that they believe in the vision and mission of their companies. The mission of our Rover Scout Group is that, “We are a team dedicated to the success of Scouts Canada by realizing individual potential through leadership and management development”. This commitment is necessary to drive future success of the individual and of the group.
Once the mentors of our new Rovers Scouts have decided that they are ready to be invested, they earn the right to attend the ceremony – the only caveat being that neither they nor anyone who has not attended an investiture can know what happens at one. Our Rover Scout Group’s tradition requires that exact details be kept secret to provide our incoming Rover Scouts with a unique experience.
The outcome of the ceremony is that our Rover Scouts feel a greater commitment towards our Group due to a greater understanding why they are part of the our Scout Group.
Having just attained full group membership, this marks a great beginning for our most recently invested Rover Scouts to soar to new heights.