Preparedness, patience, persistence: Castlebar scout group 'den' officially opens as 30-year dream becomes a reality

A SCOUT’S motto is ‘Be prepared’!

For the generations of scouts, leaders and parents connected with Castlebar’s 1st Mayo Scout Group, you can add ‘Be patient’ and, above all, ‘Be persistent’ to the equation.

Thirty years ago, the 1st Mayo Scout Group set about a building project to achieve a ‘forever home’ for the group: a new scouting ‘den’.

Persistence pays. So after three decades of struggle, dedication, grit and tenacity that involved many false dawns, their dream became a reality. And so on June 11, 2023, the new Castlebar Scout Centre (at Lough Lannagh) was officially opened by Deputy Michael Ring and Scouting Ireland Provincial Commissioner Michelle Comer – well in time for the group’s centenary in 2029!

The centre will be shared with other organisations, including Western Care, Mayo Parkinson’s and Rehab Care, as well as being open to other scout groups visiting from other parts of Mayo, and beyond.

They say it takes a village to raise a child, but it really takes a whole community to raise a forever home and to keep the dream alive.

Special credit for achieving the new den must go to the dream team of Steve Verity, Bernhard Senzel and Stephen Chambers, who all fought long and hard to get the project off the ground.

In the background they were supported by group leader at the time, Steve Lowe, as well as Fiona Lovat Bourke, and three amazing members of the group’s parents committee, Judy Duggan, Pauline McDonnell and Fiona Mannion.

Others who played a momentous role in helping the dream become a reality were the LCDC, the European Agricultural Fund, Mayo Local Action Group and Rialtas na hÉireann Tíonscadal Éireann.

“The new scout centre has given us our own space for the first time,” said Steve Verity, a long-serving scout leader, who was instrumental in the project.

“The two halls allow us to run meetings and activities concurrently, which was difficult at our old location. The store room gives us the space to store all our equipment, while, furthermore, the kitchen area and showers are very useful for an active group like ours,” he noted.

Fellow leader Chris Wyers, who has been involved in scouting since the age of six, added: “The new den is somewhere where we can truly feel at home. The location is perfect, Lough Lannagh is just across the road, an excellent amenity that any scout group would love to be able to use.”

Chris, who is cub section leader, said that a core value of scouting is to show hospitality to all other groups, which in turn opens up pathways to future friendships, and possibly international adventures together.

“Our scout den has the ability to be used by any international scout groups or other Irish scout groups that want to see and experience the Wild Atlantic Way, and the rest of the beautiful west of Ireland,” he said.

Castlebar is home to the 1st Mayo Scout Group, whose naming structure comes from it being first scout group to be established in County Mayo. In fact it was back in 1929 when a group of remarkable people in Castlebar took themselves on an exciting and extremely adventurous journey by joining the trend started by scouting forefather Sir Bayden Powell, back in 1907.

Fundamentally, the idea behind scouting has always been ‘fun with a purpose’, by developing children physically, intellectually, socially and spiritually. It’s an all-inclusive organisation, where every child is welcome regardless of their abilities, and where basic life skills such as cooking, camping, orienteering and map reading have been introduced to generations of children.

Over the years, the 1st Mayo Scout group has operated their weekly meetings out of several buildings, including Foresters Hall, Market Square, the Kirk Church, the town hall, council offices, Thomas Street Funeral Home, Spencer Street, and, most recently, St. Gerald’s Social Club on Chapel Street.

Initially, the main focus was on the cub scouts (9-11 years), and scouts (12-15 years) age groups. Over the last 30 years, however, membership has expanded significantly to cater to older youth members too, with the introduction of venture (15-17 years) and rover (18-25 years) sections. Furthermore, the youngest age group of beaver scouts (6-8 years), has proved to be incredibly popular in the community.

With this background, it became clear in recent years that a larger forever home was needed to cater to the group’s burgeoning popularity.

“More than 10 years ago, at a time of strong membership expansion for our group, our then home in Chapel Street was bursting at the seams, and limited our possibilities to develop as a group,” explained cub leader and quartermaster, Bernhard Senzel.

“So, it was up to us to come up with a plan; either to find a new home to rent or indeed try and get our own scouting den built,” he added.

Bernhard recalls that after months of fruitless search for an existing facility, they decided to go for the latter option.

Upon receiving land from the Castlebar Municipal District, project plans were put into action by applying for funding.

“We first engaged with our local councillors and struck a deal with the council for the use of a great site in the heart of Castlebar. We then approached South West Mayo Development Company and were able to secure €300,000 funding under the LEADER programme,” he outlined.

The overwhelming support from the local councillors was immense, while at the same time Deputy Michael Ring proved to be very passionate about the project, and gave his full support and backing throughout.

And so at the end of 2017 planning permission was secured for the purpose built scout centre. In 2018, the paperwork and tender process was finalised and in early 2019, the first sod was turned. Then construction began, and the den was handed over to the 1st Mayo Scout Group in 2020.

But, as we all know, a black swan then descended on Lough Lannagh and far beyond. At just about the same time that the new den was ready for operations, the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Celebrations were muted as face-to-face meetings were cancelled.

This was a major blow for an organisation that needed to develop financial momentum in a new building. After all, without group gatherings, there was no income, and it would be a struggle to maintain solvency.

Fortunately, support from social investment fund Clan Credo proved immeasurable throughout this challenging period. The group kept the faith during a time in which only virtual meetings could be held, and thankfully emerged intact on the other side of the pandemic.

“Since 2022, the group’s dynamics and membership continue to gather momentum and it is only now that we truly realise the great achievement that we have pulled off,” said Bernhard.

“With the recent official opening of the Castlebar Scout Centre, the future looks very bright indeed for scouting in Castlebar and, of course, for the many local community groups that we are delighted to share the building with,” he added.

On the back of this challenging trajectory, it was unsurprising that the opening of the new den on June 11 was a very emotional day for all. There was lots of reminiscing about camps, hiking adventures and campfire banter as many former scouts, youth members and their families returned to join in the celebrations.

Group leader and venture scout section leader Anita Glancy spoke about Castlebar Scouts’ journey from 1929 to the present day. She declared the incalculable gratitude that she, her fellow scouters, youth members, families and friends had for everyone down through the years for all the help, guidance and support they received to achieve their ‘forever home’.

Jacqui McCormack, deputy group leader and scout section leader, who kept proceedings flowing at the event as MC, has just started her 21st year as a proud scout leader, and still finds the experience as rewarding as ever.

“Seeing the former young people return as adults, who see this as somewhere for their own children to enjoy, brings me joy too,” she stated.

“Being part of Scouting Ireland has allowed me to be a part of children’s lives, to be part of building engaged young citizens of our community."

At the event, Steve Verity, venture scout leader, received a Gold Meritorious Award, a prestigious Scouting Ireland accolade for commitment and dedication that goes above and beyond what is normally expected of a volunteer.

A standing ovation from the crowd showed how valued and appreciated Steve is, and how deserving he is of this recognition.

Steve noted that having been a scout himself in his childhood, he has always enjoyed outdoor activities such as hiking, climbing, backwoods and wild camping. This is knowledge that he has been able to pass on to younger generations as a leader.

“I have been able to continue to enjoy these activities with the scouts, while encouraging them to take on new challenges and to learn new skills through teamwork,” he says. “It is really motivating to watch them mature and develop through beavers, cubs scouts, ventures and rovers into young adults, who are well able to look after themselves, and those around them."

He is proud, for example, of the fact that several Castlebar scout members having been selected to participate in the renowned Tom Crean Challenge. This involves 32 scouts following a 6-month trajectory before embarking on a week-long expedition to Iceland.

Furthermore, Castlebar scouts have regularly participated in the nationally organised mountain pursuits challenges, where experienced scouts going on 3-day backpacking expeditions to remote mountain areas across Ireland. When it comes to developing and applying operational skills, members have successfully run large events like summer camps at national and regional level.

For Steve, a highlight from his many years in scouting was a trip to the Alpine located World Scout Centre in Kandersteg, Switzerland.

“This allowed us to experience hiking at a high altitude across snow and ice, to stay in remote mountain huts and to partake in rock climbing, white water rafting and canyoning, while interacting with scouts from around the world,” he added.

Another long-standing leader who has scouted in the county for more than 30 years is Henk Wyers, who has mainly led the younger beavers and cubs age groups.

“I have seen a lot of changes in scouting over the last 30 years as a scout leader, but the fundamentals are still the same,” beaver section leader Henk stated. “The scout method is still ‘learning by doing’ in groups – the more experienced scouts will lead and help the newer ones in TEAMs (Together We Achieve More).”

Henk stresses that this type of teamwork experience is invaluable in later life, when pursuing a career. Furthermore, he added that it is testimony to the value of scouting that many of the outdoor activities that have been cornerstones of the organisation for decades are now being applied at schools too, including canoeing, orienteering and abseiling.

He too still finds it a rewarding experience each week.

“As a scout leader, I can offer our scouts opportunities that no other organisation can give – think of climbing in a fire engine, being locked up in a police cell, being driven around in an army vehicle, visiting a flight tower, or what about an international scout camp on the lawn of Windsor Castle in front of the royal family,” he noted. “And, of course, from my own point of view I have made a lot of friends for life, not only in Ireland, but also abroad."

Anita Glancy became involved in scouting 12 years ago when her son, who was eight years of age at the time, joined the group.

Starting from a point of no experience in scouting activities, she has learned from experienced leaders, and thereby developed a wealth of skills and grown in confidence herself.

“I believe that scouting is an activity that supports young people’s development in many ways – it is inclusive and is all about building confidence and self-esteem, which is paramount,” said Anita.

“Youth members have the opportunity to learn life skills, leadership skills and team building, while our outdoor adventures promote our young people’s physical development and foster a more positive attitude to learning – in effect, scouting promotes independence,” she concluded.

In many ways you could say that life lessons in leadership and persistence are epitomised by the success of securing and opening the fantastic new Castlebar Scout Centre. This ‘forever home’ will undoubtedly bring joy to today’s generation of scouts in the area, and the countless more to follow.

Appeal for new leaders

The 1st Mayo Scout Group (Castlebar) is actively seeking new leaders to join the group to facilitate the intake of new youth members when the new 23/24 season starts (September 2023).