THIS UNIFORMED LITTLE BOY

It seems like only yesterday,
His eyes were lit with joy,
As we watched with admiration,
This uniformed little boy.

Campouts, picnics, pinewood cars,
 The years slipped by,
The colours changed from blue to green,
In the twinkling of an eye.

Soon came the ranks of Dhaulagiri,
Annapurna, Kanchanjunga and Everest,
Each leading towards that final quest,
Once versioned from a far.

And then the rank of life,
And as life can often do,
The goal so close within his grasp,
Was dimming from his view.

Yet from within he found the strength
To reach that final quest,
Remembering oath from years gone by:
‘I Will Do My Best’

It seems like only yesterday,
His eyes were lit with joy,
As we watched with admiration,
This uniformed little boy.

Now with a Crown upon his chest,
He soars where once he ran,
No longer that uniformed little boy;
Our Son……A King……A Man

(Pramesh Shrestha, Troop Leader, Saint-Xaviers’ Scout Troop – Jawalakhel)

Nepal Scouts is first to …………………

NEPAL - The Nepal Scouts were the first organization to begin implementing the agreement signed in 1997 by the World Health Organization, the World Scout Organization and AHM Leprosy Relief Organization. They have translated AHM’s handbooks and pamphlets into Nepali; 359 Scout leaders and 1,060 Scouts have been trained for local detection campaigns. For example, in Jhapa, Scouts have spoken with 540 people about leprosy, its symptoms and treatment; 24 of those people came forward for medical screening. Scouts in Sunsari educated 215 people and found 17 suspected cases and referred them to the Department of Health for confirmation and treatment. "The local work of the Scouts is spreading and can go a long way to help eliminate leprosy in Nepal," said G. Ranga Rao, former director of India’s Bharat Scouts and Guides. (WORLDinfo October 2002)

Click to read more…….  http://www.scout.org/wsrc/health/healthindex.shtml

Local Scout back from Japan visit
by Jennifer Brinker, Review Staff Writer ,April 14, 2006

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A local youth officer for the Boy Scouts of America recently expanded his world understanding of scouting at an international forum in Japan.

Paul Lee, a member of St. Ann Parish in Normandy and 20-year-old senior at Lindenwood University, traveled to Narita, Japan, March 1-13 for the International Youth Forum.

The biannual event is sponsored by the Scout Association of Japan, in conjunction with the World Organization of the Scouting Movement. More than 200 scouts from 25 countries 梞ainly in the Asia-Pacific region ?attended the forum.

Countries represented at the forum included Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, China, Fiji, French Polynesia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Kiribati, Korea, Macau, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

The forum is just one of several events that are part of a friendship program organized by the Scout Association of Japan and the Boy Scouts of America. The goal of the program is to promote a friendship and understanding between scouts in the two countries. Participants also gained a better understanding of Japanese culture through a home stay they made with Japanese families.

Lee has been a Boy Scout since he was 6, and he earned his Eagle Scout award when he was 14. He serves as central region president for the scouts?Venturing Program, which he described as an "action-packed, high adventure co-ed division of Boy Scouts." It is open to young men and women ages 14-20.

During his stay in Japan, Lee toured several other areas including Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Nara and Kobe. He stayed for several days in Osaka with a Japanese Buddhist priest and his family of six.

"I was actually able to stay in the temple," he said. "I was able to witness a Buddhist ceremony, which I had never done before. And just being able to spend time alone in the temple ?that was a personal highlight."

He also visited with government and civic leaders, toured Mount Fuji, rode the Japanese bullet trains and visited the Naruto tidal whirlpools.

During the three-day forum in Narita, Lee said participants learned about the similarities and differences in scouting across the world. He said he found that many scouting organizations represented at the forum follow many of the same scouting principles.

"In the Boy Scouts of America, we have the scout law … we have 12 points that guide our scouting," he said. "And those points are pretty much the same all over the world."

He said that he was surprised to see the differences in scouting uniforms. And some countries have designated buildings for scouting, instead of gathering at unrelated locations for meetings.

In some cases, said Lee, "the local government will give a volunteer money to renovate their house and then that additional part will be the scout house," he said. "And typically, the leaders will be leaders for life. It抯 one of those things that gets passed down from generation to generation."

Lee noted that Japan was "the friendliest place I have ever been to in my life.

"Everyone is so eager to make sure your stay is top-notch," he said. "Their actual thought is that whatever they do is not enough." He added that they have a high regard for American scouts.

Lee said he was struck with how the Japanese engage in various religious practices from a number of denominations.

"A lot of Japanese people don抰 have a set religion," he said. For example, some "get married using the Christian rite, and when they die … the burial and final ceremonies follow the Buddhist rite. Everybody is deeply religious, but it抯 not just one religion exclusively."

Lee is expected to graduate from Lindenwood next month with a degree in human service agency management. After that, he said he hopes to gain full-time employment as a professional scout.

He also remains involved with several local Boy Scout troops as a mentor. His primary work is with Troop 256 at Lucas Crossing School in Normandy, and he also helps with troops at St. Ann. "I抳e had a lot of very positive experiences in scouting, and I抳e been able to tour all across the country," he said. "I hope to become a professional and keep giving back to the scouts in that way."

Citizenship without Politics

 These days, political signs are sprouting like dandelions in front yards around the country. As the election season heats up, politicians will work hard to align themselves with apple pie, motherhood, and the American flag. One way they do that is by inviting Scouts to perform flag ceremonies at political rallies. Such participation is permitted by the Boy Scouts of America—but only to a point. According to the BSA’s rules and regulations, the organization’s executive board, officers, councils, and members are not allowed to “involve the Scouting movement in any question of a political character. However, this shall not be interpreted to prevent the teaching of patriotism and good citizenship as required to fulfill the Corporation’s purpose.” The “Information for Parents” insert in the Boy Scout application says the same thing in simpler language: “Citizenship activities are encouraged, but partisan political activities are prohibited.” In other words, you can present the colors at Senator Smith’s campaign rally, but you can’t sit behind Senator Smith on the podium and cheer when he calls his challenger a bozo. Many activities fall in a gray area between citizenship and politics, as a Salt Lake City troop recently learned; see http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_3715610 for details. If you anticipate that a citizenship activity might cross the line into politics, it probably makes sense to consult with your unit commissioner, district executive, or a council representative ahead of time.

Citizenship without Politics

 These days, political signs are sprouting like dandelions in front yards around the country. As the election season heats up, politicians will work hard to align themselves with apple pie, motherhood, and the American flag. One way they do that is by inviting Scouts to perform flag ceremonies at political rallies. Such participation is permitted by the Boy Scouts of America—but only to a point. According to the BSA’s rules and regulations, the organization’s executive board, officers, councils, and members are not allowed to “involve the Scouting movement in any question of a political character. However, this shall not be interpreted to prevent the teaching of patriotism and good citizenship as required to fulfill the Corporation’s purpose.” The “Information for Parents” insert in the Boy Scout application says the same thing in simpler language: “Citizenship activities are encouraged, but partisan political activities are prohibited.” In other words, you can present the colors at Senator Smith’s campaign rally, but you can’t sit behind Senator Smith on the podium and cheer when he calls his challenger a bozo. Many activities fall in a gray area between citizenship and politics, as a Salt Lake City troop recently learned; see http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_3715610 for details. If you anticipate that a citizenship activity might cross the line into politics, it probably makes sense to consult with your unit commissioner, district executive, or a council representative ahead of time.

In partnership with the United Nations, World Scouting contribute to the Global Campaign on the Millennium Development Goals by launching the “Youth of the World Campaign”. The purpose of this youth campaign is to mobilise and sensitise the youth on issues regarding development, and to invite young people to act, debate and reflect in a community.

Take part in the Youth of the World Campaign

You are between 15 to 26 years old, you are concerned by the World issues: sustainable development, environment, peace. You agree that in the third millennium, it is a scandal that 1.2 billion people live on less than $1 per day, that 800 million people go to bed hungry every day, that 28,000 children die from poverty-related causes everyday. You have heard about the Millennium Development Goals (http://www.millenniumcampaign.org/) and you know that we are the first generation that has the means to change this situation. The world is currently spending 1 trillion dollars on defence annually, this is much more than the estimated annual cost of 40-70 billion dollars required to meet the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.

Maybe you have the feeling that you are powerless and that you cannot change anything. This is wrong! You can do something. Thousands and thousands of young people all over the world are engaged in many projects to improve the conditions of life of their communities and to advocate for changes. All together we can join our efforts and make a difference.

Just form a team with some of your friends and contact us. We will help you to develop a project, which can take one of the two following forms:

1. Develop a campaign within your school, within your community, and raise awareness about the MDGs.
2. Or, develop a specific project to contribute to solve a problem related to the MDGs.

We can help you to get the information and the skills required to develop your project. If it is considered as significant, you will get the Youth of the World badge and be registered for the Youth for development Prize.

Don’t wait! Take part in the Youth of the World Campaign! Set up your team and change the world!

Aims of the Campaign

• Mobilise young people, from 15 to 26 years old, on the Millennium Development Goals and encourage them to develop projects responding to the needs of their community.
• Develop educational resources enabling young people to acquire motivation, knowledge and skills regarding the Millennium development Goals and ability to develop projects.
• Support young people to use media or to create alternative solutions to inform, sensitize, mobilise other young people on a larger audience on the Millennium Development Goals and issues regarding sustainable development and peace.

Components

1. Scouts of the World Programme
2. Youth for Development Prize

Principles

• Promote and support youth led projects
• Create information for young people by young people
• Focus on local communities and needs of young people
• Invest in youth
• Reaching out to young people with the right media

The Youth of the World Campaign is devised and organised by the
World Organization of the Scout Movement. © Copyright June 2004.

Youth involvement in the Asia-Pacific Scout Region December, Fifty-seven participants from 17 countries attended the APR Youth Forum at the Games Village in Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. Six Youth Advisers were elected and Edward Cook (New Zealand) was appointed as the Chairman of the Youth Group and will attend the Regional Committee meetings. Each of the other young people will attend the sub-committee meetings. The Youth Advisers are: Edward Cook, Chairman (NZ), Eko Andrianto (Indonesia), Netsai Khaimarn (Thailand), In Sun Ryu (Korea), Maiya Twayanabasu (Nepal), Aaron Wardle (Australia).

Youth Forum Conducted

16 march 2006, A Scout’s Youth Forum was organized at Bhaktapur on the topic "Why Youths enroll in Drug Abuse and Drop Outs in Nepal Scouts" . The forum was organized by the Everest Scout Group for the young scouts in the Everest Scouts Group. There were altogether 16 scouts(13 girls and 3 boys) participating. The main objective of the forum was to discuss on why youths enroll in the drugs and the major cause for why scouts leave the  nepal scouts. There should be better understanding in between the scouts and the scouters,no descrimination should be shown among the scouts, no oppurtunities to a single youth scout. scouts should be let free to express their views among all friends and scouters. create atmosphere to develop goood character build personality. high charges for the scoutings events should be discouraged. qualified scouters should be involved in imparting scouting education.Moreover youths should be given oppurtunities to set the programmes or design programmes for themselves.The inputs on Dropouts in nepal scouts was given by Ramgopal karmarcharya, the national secretory  and bhakta sir, national training commissioner of Nepal Scouts and mr. sundar layalu gave input on the drugabuse.

Celebrate the centenary of Scouting——Climb Everest

Gulf Air is supporting the Scout Association in their dream to climb Everest in 2007 to celebrate the centenary of Scouting. Sir Edmund Hillary is patron of the Scout Association expedition to Everest in 2007. In preparation for this attempt, a Scout Association group as just Peparted for Nepal with Gulf Air to test their systems and operational capabilities before the big Everest attempt in two year time. ?

Facing their toughest challenge yet, the Scout Association group is off to the Himalayas to climb Mount Cho Oyu, the 8th highest mountain in the world standing at 8201 meters (26,906 feet). The objective of the expedition is to train at altitude to prepare the group for the Everest climb in 2007.

Clive Wratten, UK General Manager for Gulf Air, said: The Scout Association expedition to the Himalayas this year and the Everest attempt in 2007 are both extremely exciting projects. Gulf Air is delighted to be offering support to the group and we will be following their progress closely?

Expedition Leader Nathan Figg said: The reality of the enormous task ahead is starting to hit home. We’ve trained hard for this climb and it will be a real test of how the team operates above 7000 metres?

The group has been in training for the Everest attempt for five years; a tough training schedule which has seen them enduring the Scottish Highlands during winter, the steep climbs of the Swiss Alps and climbing the highest mountain in North America, Mt McKinley in Alaska, acknowledged to be the coldest mountain in the world.

Photos :Trip to Nepal (Japan-PaxIV Hyper)

photo by :Youhei KATOH

Scout Members featured in this year New Year Honours List for the work for UK and International Scouting.?

A father and son were both awarded MBEs for their services to Scouting and for setting up and running the Friendship Clinic in Nepal. Father Peter Shore, from Bristol, founded the Friendship Clinic charity in 1996 to help provide clean water and medical care for residents of Meghauli in Nepal. He and his wife decided to set up the charity there after they got lost backpacking in a jungle in 1987 and were rescued by an English-speaking local Scout. He said: it feels very nice to have been honoured like this. I have known about it for some time, but it is still very exciting.? Peter son Kevin was awarded the MBE, both for the Friendship Clinic Nepal and for his long and distinguished medical career in the Royal Navy.Kevin was a Sea Scout Leader in Plymouth, but is now land-based, and is taking on the role of Group Scout Leader. Kevin, has also just completed the world toughest marathon on Everest. ( collected by sunil)

Chief Scout’s Commissioner Andre Bredenkamp summits Mount Everest on June 14 2004

Chief Scout’s Commissioner Andre Bredenkamp summits Mount Everest Andre Bredenkamp holding the South African and World Scouting flags on Mount Everest.

You get to the top, you feel particularly lonely. There is snow everywhere. It’s a blizzard. You have this mask on your nose and your face, and a big hood over your ears. You can’t hear anything. It is completely silent, you can just hear yourself breathing. You have such sensory deprivation. You see people gesticulating to each other. You shake hands, pat each other on the back. "You take off your mask, you have no oxygen, you want to fall asleep. You don’t have the capacity to feel much, you aren’t thinking straight. "Then you realise you have a job to do. You think about putting up the flags. There is a country you are standing up for, this flag of democracy. You really have to concentrate. You have a strong bond with the nation whose flag you are putting up there. You feel solidarity, patriotism. I have done this for my country. You drink some water, put your mask back on and turn around to go down." This was how Maritzburg-raised Andre Bredenkamp described how it feels to be at the top of the world’s highest mountain, Mount Everest. Bredenkamp, who cut his mountaineering teeth in the Drakensberg, recently became the first South African to summit Everest from the Tibetan side. He and 15 other climbers made it to the top during a heavy blizzard, on the same day that three other climbers died in their attempts. Interviewed over coffee on his return, Bredenkamp described how, having made it to the top, he turned around and walked another seven hours back to his base, feeling "more physically drained than I had ever felt in my life". But, said Bredenkamp, it is at times like this that you see God "loudly and clearly" and it is at times like this that the soul leaps with rejuvenation. The softly-spoken 46-year-old Cape Town property developer – who is the son of retired Maritzburg Varsity Professor of Religion, Vic Bredenkamp and his wife Marie – spoke with emotion about the 15 minutes he spent at the summit. "I didn’t cry at the top because my eyelashes were stuck together. I took off my glasses and my eyelashes froze together. I was trying to get them apart," he said. During the interview, Bredenkamp described the close bond he formed with his sherpa, Lakpa Chir, the wretchedness he felt at having to leave an injured Korean climber to die on the way down and the emotion he felt when he found that his friend and fellow climber, Chris Drummond, who turned back just before the summit because of frost-bite, had waited for him at the 8 300 metre high camp from which they made their bid for the summit, despite the fact that the camp had been abandoned due to an avalanche warning. Bredenkamp also described his pride at being a South African on this trip, his commitment to a "life of service" in the country and his passion to make the most of each day and to fill his life with adventure. A boy scout from an early age and now South Africa’s Chief Scouts Commissioner, Bredenkamp left two flags, one incorporating the South African Scouts logo and the emblem of the International Scouts movement, in addition to the South African flag at the top of Everest. He is passionate about the scouts and ascribes many of his personal qualities and strengths to what he learned as a young scout in Pietermaritzburg. Bredenkamp was largely responsible for changing the rules a few years ago to open its membership to girls. As the chief scouts commissioner, he voluntarily spends about two hours a day of his busy life working for the movement and can be found regularly walking with a group of scouts on Table Mountain. Bredenkamp’s dream to summit Everest was born about four years ago while he was trekking with two friends in Nepal. They were Chris Drummond and Mike Nixon, both fellow property developers in Cape Town. "That was when we first saw Everest. It is such a beautiful mountain and it was a moving experience. The three of us had walked ahead of our group. As we stood looking at the mountain, we told each other we would all be back to have a crack at the peak." Having articulated their dream, the three then "read all the books". They later joined up to climb the Acconcagua summit on the border of Argentina and Chile – the highest mountain on the South American continent and then, about nine months ago, to climb Mount Elbrus in Russia. They had all previously climbed Kilimanjaro. Now, with Everest under his belt, it is a case of "four down, three to go"’, for Bredenkamp, who wishes to climb the highest summits on each of the seven continents, a feat that only one South African, Sean Wisedale, has accomplished to date. Explaining why he decided to go up from the Tibetan side, Bredenkamp said: "About 70% of ascents are done from the south, from Nepal. People tend to choose the easiest route when climbing the hardest mountain. The north side generally gets the worst weather. We chose to ascend from the north because we had seen it from the south on our trip to Nepal and enjoy travelling to new places. Secondly, we wanted to get away from the hundreds of climbers who ascend from the south. Thirdly, the cost of a permit for the north is considerably cheaper. Nepal charges $10 000 a person from the south and it is about half the price from Tibet. As it was, this trip cost us R250 000 each, including the costs of flights, hiring sherpas, yaks for transport, food and oxygen bottles.’’ The trio left at the beginning of April this year on their two month journey. After weeks of acclimatisation, Nixon had to turn back after developing a lung infection. It was only Bredenkamp and Drummond who made it to the 8 300 metre top camp from which they made their summit attempt. "We reached the camp at about 5 pm together with about 70 other climbers all hoping to take advantage of the good weather forecast for the next day. After melting snow for some tea, we went to sleep, only to be woken by our sherpa at 11 pm to prepare to depart. It took at least an hour to do the most mundane things, like putting on boots, because of the cold and the shortage of oxygen. Every time you do something, you have to stop and breathe for a minute or two. Just tying your shoelaces is exhausting.’’ They started their ascent just after midnight on May 19. "We put on our crampons and started walking with torches on our heads. We climbed for about seven hours in the dark. Chris was still with us at this stage. Then we got to a section at the top of a ridge, when a big gust of wind flung Chris about 20 metres down the side. He was stopped by a wedge in between two boulders and, in the process, he lost his ice axe. "When he recovered and got back on the path, he was very shaken and had lost his nerve. We realised that, with another seven hours to go without an ice axe, he would not be able to climb the final slopes of ice – and then turn around and walk for another seven hours back to the camp." So Drummond turned back and left Bredenkamp to continue. He reached the summit at about 2.30 pm – becoming one of 15 out of 70 to make it to the top. After experiencing the exhilaration at the top, an exhausted Bredenkamp turned around – only to be confronted by the most traumatic event yet. "A Korean man had made it to the top and was walking down just in front of me. I noticed at a particularly difficult climbing section that there was a big delay – and discovered that he had fallen and broken his leg. "He was lying in the snow with people around him and he was begging them not to leave him. We looked at him and we had to leave him and walk on. We simply did not have the capacity to carry him or drag him. We could hardly keep upright ourselves. Some people took out their spare jackets and covered him and we told him to relax. He stayed there, nobody tried to carry him down. Nobody was capable. It was ice cold, there was little oxygen. They were really urging him to go to sleep and die peacefully. "You try to distance yourself. You tell yourself I must just walk on, but you know that someone has just called out for help and you have been incapable. I could do nothing, I could barely stand up myself. You realise this is a vicious mountain." After a gruelling climb down, Bredenkamp returned to the camp at about 10 pm in the dark. "If I had been any more tired, I would have died. When I arrived at the camp, I realised that the entire camp was deserted. There had been a big build-up of snow that day on the cliff above the campsite and it had been evacuated because of an avalanche warning." The only person who had remained behind was the frostbitten Chris Drummond. "He had stayed to be with me," Bredenkamp said. "I called out to him, ‘I am back, but you are going to have to put me to bed.’ He undressed me, took off my boots, hat and wet jacket and laid down a sleeping bag. He put me into bed, made me tea, and fed me while I was shaking and freezing in my sleeping bag. He acted as my nurse. Then he lay next to me to keep me warm." Clearly touched by his friend’s brave act of loyalty, Bredenkamp continued: "There is not much morality on Everest. You come back thinking you should maybe stick to gentle hikes in Newlands Forest." Now that he is back home with his girlfriend, Bredenkamp is still in recovery mode and is nursing a cracked rib. "My recovery has been a lot slower than usual, both physically and mentally. I am finding it difficult to concentrate, and sleep. When we departed we were as strong as lions, but we returned as weak as the Zimbabwe currency." Asked who it was that helped instill a love of the mountains in him, Bredenkamp did not hesitate to name Colin Inglis, his former scout leader, who lives in Pietermaritzburg. "He was a Cambridge graduate and a World War 2 pilot in the SA Air Force. He was chairman of the Mountain Club of SA and a great climber who did many first ascents of mountains. He also became Chief Scout of South Africa. Every year, he would arrange for our troop to camp in the Cape. I had the opportunity at an early and impressionable age to climb in the Cape mountains with him. He was a hero and I aspired to do what he did." Another person he admires is Ed February, "the first black climber of international stature in South Africa", who was part of the disastrous 1996 Sunday Times expedition up Everest. "Ed is one of the most accomplished climbers in the country and I have great admiration for him." Bredenkamp’s interest in mountains was further nurtured when he was a boy scout. "I was a scout throughout high school and ended up as a Springbok scout. "Scouting teaches people skills they generally do not learn at school, like leadership, the environment and good citizenship. "I am passionate about the movement. Formal education lacks a great deal. I suppose that if family structures were better, kids would learn more from their parents. But we are a nation of many single parents and grandparents raising children. "70% of our scouts are in black rural areas, so we are somewhat faceless. In the past, we were very visible in urban areas, but that is not the case any more. The growth is in black rural areas. In KwaZulu-Natal, Mangosuthu Buthelezi has been very supportive of the growth of the movement. "The life skills I learned through my scouting days have been more valuable to me than my formal education. In my business, I am able to lead my staff because of the skills I learned. They also taught us imagination and problem solving." One of his favourite memories is a hike he did with two scouts in the Drakensberg when he was 18 from the Mont aux Sources amphitheatre along the escarpment to Giants Castle. "It took 13 days and we carried our food from top to bottom without any help." Although he plans to get the seven summits under his belt and would still like to summit Everest without oxygen, Bredenkamp insisted that mountaineering is not an obsession. "It is not all-consuming. I have a passion for life, with many interests. Climbing mountains is just one of them. I do a lot of sports. I cycle and have done a few Argus Cycle tours in under three hours; I run a bit and have a silver medal for the Comrades Marathon and I have done three-and-a-half Duzi canoe marathons. In the fourth, we broke the boat in the middle of the event.’’ He is also a keen photographer and enjoys reading, particularly biographies. Although he spends time with young scouts, he does not have any children of his own. "That opportunity passed me by," he said. While at base camp, Bredenkamp and the other South Africans took part quite a few political discussions. "We were fascinated by the American contingent that was with us. None of them seems to have understood that their country has invaded a sovereign nation. "One of the climbers on our team was a man from upstate New York who was on the mountain the fatal day in 1996 when Ian Woodall and the South African Sunday Times expedition climbed. He had been in the base camp when the South Africans were there. When he first met us, he said to us, ‘I hope you are not like the other South Africans we met.’ "But we were so proud to be South African to sit around the dinner table in the tent and talk about how we have grown together as a country in the past last 10 years. It gave us pride to relay to people the spirit of forgiveness that exists and the desire to break down racial barriers. "I know the people we met were impressed by our performance of working as a team. I believe we left the mountain leaving behind a trail of goodwill. The British climbers we met, the French, the Canadian, the Irish; they will all be coming to South Africa to visit." Bredenkamp places a deep value in being a servant of his community – something he learned from, among other people, his father and from the scout movement. "My father, being a Methodist minister, was always working for no pay and is the happiest person I know. I believe that doing volunteer work is much more fulfilling than working for a salary. The level of community involvement by citizens is a measure of the level of civilisation of that community. "For as long as I am in SA, I must contribute to the growth and betterment of society and the environment." Although as a child Bredenkamp was to be found sitting in the pews of the Methodist Church, he is not an avid churchgoer. "But I have a deep sense of religion. I find getting out into nature and into mountains tremendously inspiring and rewarding. God is not very visible in the city. But you certainly see Him in the mountains. Being out there rejuvenates my soul and it reorders my priorities." (source:scouringorg.za)

Japanese Rovers in Nepal ………… A group of the japanese rovers( PAXIV) arrrived in nepal in 11 th march and stayed for the six days . The main purpose of the visiting nepal is to collabrate the nepelse rover scouts and do the programs together in nepal. Befores also different groups have arrived to nepal and has done different types of the works in nepal . like sharing expriences, cultural exchange.,tree plantation and soon . Here is the Short briefing about the visit by the one of the crew member :  

11th Mar. -arrived Kathmandu, my old Nepalese friends came to see us at air port we could have short briefing with them 12th Mar. -visited Kakani Training Centre we had seen planted trees which we did just 2 years ago and they are now growing.

13th Mar. -took Mountain Fright we had looked at Mt. Everest from an airplane. That was very very beautiful. -meeting with Niroj It was nice meeting with him but he seems so busy for his study. so we couldn’t have the time so long. 14th Mar. -joined Holi we could be invited to Holi by my old Nepalese friends. we had painting colors on our face and got big wet. that was interesting culture we thought. 15th Mar. -meeting with some Nepalese scouts (informal) we held a meeting with Nepalese scouts informally. at that, we discussed about our next project. But it was very regretting that there were no Bhaktapur scout even we had asked Niroj to participate. please see our planning paper for next project. 16th Mar. -left Kathmandu  The main purpose fo the visiting are as follows:

• to continue the previous program and see the previous programs outputs
  
•  to make the plans for the forthcoming programs and activities
• to have the exhange and exprience abou the scouting in japan and nepal
• to make the good friendship