“Scouting is an adventure that brings happiness every day. It is love and understanding for the surrounding world. It is sincerity and friendship. It is a wild feast and a serious responsibility. It is the life’s contribution under the open sky to the art of living and survival. It is the will to serve others” With these words the Bulgarian scouts opened their celebration dedicated to 22 February- the Scouts’ Founder’s Day. The Scout Movement, which is one of the world’s most large-scale movements, numbers some 28 million children and adolescents from numerous scouts’ clubs and associations across the world. The Scout Movement was found by Sir Robert Baden-Powell in England in 1907. The first spark of the scout idea flared up in Bulgaria as early as 1911. Over the years the movement subsided for political reasons but after 1991 it resumed power with the support of the World Association of the Scout Movement. Listen now to 95-year old Miroslav Dimitrov, the oldest scout member in Bulgaria and one of the founders of the movement in Bulgaria:
“The National Organization of Bulgarian Scouts has mostly an educational role. A similar role is played by the family or the school but we often witness serious setbacks as far as child upbringing is concerned. What I mean is some qualities like honesty, loyalty, respect for our parents and the elderly, as well as for history and traditions, readiness to help the weaker and a positive mindset. Today in Bulgaria we are fighting exactly the vices that prevent children from becoming strong persons that have confidence and are able to take right decisions. Tossed by every-day cares, many parents leave their children to grow up in the street. They leave the TV and the Internet to bring them up. What is missing is an authority figure that can set a good example and plant the seeds of all the qualities I mention above. Therefore, the goal of the scout movement is to incorporate Bulgaria’s children into the world’s community and give them the confidence that they are responsible and aware persons that can create their life and help the more vulnerable. Through games, outdoor camps and meetings we form competitive spirit and determination to cope with the challenges of life. What is more, we teach children to be true friends and stay away from lies, hypocrisy and meanness”, Miroslav Dimitrov told Radio Bulgaria.
Bulgarian scouts find most memorable the international scout camps that take place every year. Last year young people from Sweden, Slovenia, Spain and Bulgaria gathered together at a camp in Bulgaria under the motto “The Preservation of cultural heritage in the Sub-Balkan Valleys and the Black sea coast”, organized with the financial support of EU’s Youth in Action Programme. During Scout camps children visit museums and memorials, as well as organize discussions. What is more, the scouts present their countries through video, music, songs, dances, traditional costumes and dishes. Miroslav Dimitrov is among this year’s camp’s organizers who in spite of his age has preserved a young spirit and has remained faithful to the scout movement.
English version: Vyara Popova
По публикацията работи: Diana Hristakieva
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