Cubs 2022 Terms 1 and 2

By Stephen D’Arcy-Evans – Pack parent helper

Comings and Goings

It is always fun to welcome new cubs into the pack and with Meerkats up and running, we have regular intakes of new members to keep us on our toes. Happily with the Meerkats experience behind them our young cubs have settled in quickly and are contributing to the life and spirit of the pack each week.

We’ve also said farewell to a few cubs with our APS Kaa (Erik van Putten) and his two daughters emigrating to the Netherlands, whilst another cub has left for the USA. We’ve also welcomed Thandi into the cub leadership team this year.

Meetings, Outings and Camps

At cubs we aim to mix up the agenda with a blend of activities and advancements both at the hall and out and about. In term one and two we’ve had the added excitement of the pack’s first full camp since 2019. The cub camp was a new experience for all cubs who attended as none were old enough for overnight camping in 2019.

The cubs completed a Saturday hike up to Chapmans Peak hike in January and despite a strong wind we enjoyed a brilliantly sunny day. Sharing riddles with the cubs on the way down added an extra layer of fun. 

Our Friday programme has also included outings, including a family walk down the Klaassenbosch and Alphen green belt and an excursion through the De Hel conservation area. In the gathering evening De Hel takes on added air of mystery and for some of our younger cubs this was their first experience of a night hike. These outings are always a good opportunity to practise the Cub Outdoor Code and De Hel coincided nicely with the start of the City Nature Challenge weekend, allowing us to remind the cubs of this activity in person, with earning their Challenge badge over the weekend.

Our meetings at Keurboom Park and Liesbeek River Park set the scene for skills advancement. We used the Liesbeek River Park from Fernwood’s base to set and follow woodcraft trails, and at Keurboom Park our cubs rotated through a number of bases to cover key skills and challenges. I’m always impressed by the meeting programmes that our leaders assemble and the amount of effort that goes into creating a programme for each week is considerable.

Some of the most fun we have at cubs revolves around cooking and fires. Whilst the s’mors we made in the first term aren’t exactly healthy, they were a good reward for each sixes’ skills practise in fire safety and lighting fires. Our Healthy Eating programme had the cubs assembling vegetarian pitas stuffed with grated cheese, diced tomato and their own handmade tzatziki.

Reflections of an Parent Assistant

I’ve had the pleasure of seeing both my children through the cub programme at 1st Claremont progress on into scouts where, if it’s possible, they’re having even more fun in their adventures on the bigger stage that scouts offers. 

Despite not being in uniform, I’ve been a regular parent assistant at most meetings for the past four and half years and I can only applaud the effort that our leaders put in each week through every term to ensure that the cubs have a programme that is both fun and educational. There’s a balance to be found between pushing the straight advancement programme, from recruits through to the end of the Gold Wolf, integration of the yearly Challenge programme and ordinary fun. In my opinion I’d say that our leaders strike that balance excellently. This term, we’ve started working on a shared programme with our friends at 4th Claremont Fernwood Cubs to lighten the load on both leadership teams a little.

As a regular assistant, if not a uniformed leader, I can echo the sentiment that participation in scouting as an adult is rewarding in itself. It is a joy to see our cubs grow in confidence and personality and leadership potential during their years in the pack. And, at the end of the working week, I’ve found it a great change of pace to switch into cub mode and meet up with my friends in pack leadership. You won’t regret getting involved if you’re able to.