Young Leaders Weekend
An annual event on the CWA calendar is the Young Leaders’ Weekend. Held in May this year, it was attended by 13 young people. The chosen venue was Manjedal, the Scout Association’s outdoor activities centre in Byford. CWA members, Helen Armstrong, Annette
Howard and Helen Moore were the organisers of the event.
After a brief “getting-to-know-you” session, participants and leaders headed for the archery range. As the morning progressed skills improved, and the firing line was shifted further from the target. There were a number of “bulls’ eyes” along the way.
The afternoon’s activity was a crate climb. An upside-down milk crate formed the base and then a second was placed on top. Toes were inserted into the hand-hold spaces and another crate was handed up to the climber. Slowly and carefully, the stack increased until
the pull of gravity won. The record for the activity was 15 crates – amazingly high! A safety rope ensured a controlled trip back to the ground. (Providing your “buddy” was paying attention to the task!)
Teamwork activities proved to be lots of fun after dinner, with groups tackling the challenge of making a shelter to accommodate them all, using only newspaper and masking tape. A group effort to move a raw egg across the room using strings and rubber bands seemed
doomed, but we are happy to report that there were no tragedies, and the eggs were able to be consumed at breakfast.
On Sunday morning, the 240 metre aerial runway above the treetops and across a valley provided a huge challenge for most of the participants. Helen Moore’s experience as a School Nurse enabled her to encourage some of the timid ones into taking the plunge, and
once they braved the first crossing, they were lining up to experience the thrill again and again.
A short session on the low ropes’ course on the way back to base proved the effectiveness of teamwork, as it was impossible to complete the course alone.
While the format and venue were quite different from previous years, the basic skills taughtwere the same – communication, goal setting and teamwork. Participants all agreed that they had taken part in a great weekend.