Centenary

Surrey West- Wet “n” Wacky September 2009 September 5th/6th 2009 saw the launch of Girlguiding’s Centenary Year. In Surrey West, the centenary theme is water and so we started with a “Wet ‘n’ Wacky” party at Imber Court for 3000 Rainbows, Brownies, Guides, Rangers and their leaders together with members of the Trefoil Guild. Many of the participants also brought with them people who had been members of Guiding in the past. It was a huge success and Hinchley Wood units turned up in large numbers to join in the fun. Amy from the 3rd Hinchley Wood Guides said of “Wet ‘n’ Wacky”: “I thought it was an amazing experience for everyone, it was great fun. One of my many favourite activities was the “dunk tank” which I went on lots of times, as I loved it so much. Another activity we tried was Mount Everest (an enormous blow up slide) it was awesome; I think everybody went on it, well almost everyone!”

It’s been a busy year at Hinchley Wood Guides and Rangers. Every week - and every other week for Rangers – We have been working towards badges, planning Centenary events, organising expeditions, creating our Heritage Exhibition, participating in Guiding days and generally having fun. At Hinchley Wood we aim to work with the community whenever we can. From helping people with Autism in the village of Solheimér in Iceland, to creating Heritage exhibitions around the area.

We get so much from being a member of Hinchley Wood Guiding. It has given us amazing adventures which include spending a weekend sailing a 40 foot yacht, trips to Portland and Iceland, various camps and days out including wet ‘n’ wacky and our Centenary finale at Hampton Court.

Fundraising is a big part of Guiding. Earlier this year we had our own craft café whilst fundraising for Iceland and Portland, we invited members of the local community to share our adventure with us. We also entered into the Hampton Court Flower Show where we were awarded “highly commended” by the RHS.

As well as all of that, some of our Guides and Rangers have participated in international trips and the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme."

London and South East Region- Capital Jig October 2009

More than 2,000 Guides, Senior Section, leaders and Trefoil Guild members travelled to one of five destinations – London, Paris, Prague, Copenhagen or Edinburgh completing several challenges on the way. The Hinchley Wood Guides and Dittons Rangers took part in a Monopoly Tube challenge visiting as many tube stations as they could and collecting evidence of their visit as they went. There was definitely some imaginative evidence including the recording of the voice of one of the station guards saying the name of the tube stop onto a camera!

We arrived in Holburn with the rest of the London “Jiggers” in the afternoon. The main event was the LaSER satellite link-up with Paris, Prague, Copenhagen and Edinburgh, which enabled us to take part in an Eurovision-style show. It featured the talented Regional winner of Guiding Star, Nathalie Gunn, wonderful dancers, presenters and brave interviewees. All too soon the event was over. Time for food! We headed to Wagamama’s to fill up on noodles and then we wandered back to our accommodation. We enjoyed staying for the first time at Baden-Powell Lodge.

The following day we had one more trip to make. This was to Pax Lodge, one of four World Centres for the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. We were taken on a tour around Pax Lodge by some of the volunteers who told us about the history of Pax Lodge. They also spoke of their experiences as volunteers, which inspired some of the Rangers to think about volunteering in one of the World Centres in the future. We finished our tour with lunch, and of course a spending spree in the shop! Then we headed home on the train, tired but happy.