Welcome back everyone! I hope you have all had fun over the school holidays. Did you get outside into the great outdoors with your families and friends? These holidays, my family has enjoyed camping with friends, some kayaking and liloing down a river, some body surfing and body boarding at the beach, and some fun on the trails with our mountain bikes! We also had a lovely Christmas Day visiting family and friends. What did you do? Make sure you have some answers, because I'll be asking when we meet again! This term, our weekly meetings start again on Thursday 5 February at the Macarthur Scout Hall in Coyne Street, Macarthur. We'll start at our regular time of 6.30pm and generally will run for an hour. Our theme this term is 'Caring and Sharing'. Does that sound familiar? It should, because Joey Scouts care and Joeys Scouts share - it's all part of the Joey Scout motto of HOP - Helping Other People. If you participate in all the key activities, you'll have earned your Joey Scout Caring and Sharing Challenge badge! This term, we're exploring all the ways we can make our caring and sharing better, meet with others in the community who do a lot of caring and sharing, and we'll be having lots of fun as we do it! And guess what? We're going to the Snowy Hydro SouthCare helicopter base! We'll get to look at the helicopter up close and meet with the people who have made it their job to help others in trouble! We'll do lots more as well throughout the term. I hope you're looking forward to it! Did you know that this year is the 25th year of Joey Scouts in Australia? Scouts has been in Australia a lot longer, but Joey Scouts started 25 years ago. So, later in the year, look out for some exciting activities as we commemorate this big milestone! I'm sure you agree that it's a good thing that Joey Scouts was started because it is great fun! If you're considering whether Joeys is for you and your child, please visit us! Provided your child is aged 6 or 7, you're welcome to trial Joey Scouts with us for up to three weeks before deciding whether to join. We're looking to grow our Joey Scout section this term, and new faces and new ideas are always welcome. Please contact me to let me know to expect you, and to confirm that we're going to be at the Scout Hall because we often meet at other locations for activities and excursions. If you'd like to speak with me about Joey Scouts, or if you have questions, please contact me outside of our meeting times because my focus must be on the Joeys when our meetings are underway. Email me at joeys [at] macarthurscouts.org.au (insert @ in place of [at]) or phone me on 0414 920 097. I'm looking forward to a terrific 2015 - I hope you are too! Yours in Scouting Numbat Joey Scout Leader Macarthur Scout Group |