As part of UK Scouting’s ‘A Million Hands’ Community’ Impact Programme, 20 Scouts from 1st Wargrave recently gave their time and energy to help local charity Camp Mohawk, which is situated just north of the village adjacent to Bowsey Woods.
Camp Mohawk is a multi-functional day for children with special needs and their families. Throughout the year the centre provides a range of activities, facilities and natural space to encourage children with a variety of special needs to play, socialise and learn in a secure and caring environment.
The ‘A Million Hands’ programme is the 21st Century equivalent to what used to be called ‘Bob-a-Job Week’ in the 1970’s and 1980’s, and provides an opportunity for Scouts to give back to their local community by supporting national and local charities. UK Scouting’s aim is to mobilise half a million Scouts in support of social issues, and Wargrave Scouts chose mental wellbeing as their topic, with Camp Mohawk as the chosen Charity.
The Scouts completed a planning session to brainstorm ideas during one of their Monday evening troop nights to establish how they could best help the centre, and then over a dozen bug hotels were constructed by the Scouts using recycled baked bean tins and bamboo canes. These were then installed in the grounds of the 5 acre site by the Scouts on a recent visit. The Scouts also completed other tasks including collecting wood, and weeded paths around the centre’s camp fire circle.
Peter Walsh, Wargrave Scout Leader said: “Lots of local children benefit from attending Camp Mohawk and therefore we were pleased to help the Centre with some of their site maintenance tasks, as part of the A Million Hands programme. Our Scouts thoroughly enjoyed the chance to make a difference and to appreciate the amazing environment that Camp Mohawk provides to help support young people with special needs and their families”.
Matthew Wood, Site Manager at Camp Mohawk commented “We were delighted to have our local village Scout Troop help us in this way. The maintenance of our Woodland site is an ongoing challenge. Camp Mohawk was started in 1973 by a Scout Troop from Newham in East London, so it was great to re-connect with our heritage”.