A PARTNERSHIP has been formed between the Barbados Boy Scouts Association and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) that will bring future benefits to the Scouts.
PWC, a global professional services company, will make an annual financial contribution to the Scout Shop, an annual PWC Award Of Excellence to the top Scout in Barbados (trophy and cash), and a Challenge Shield For Excellence in scouting to the best Scout troop in Barbados.
The possibility of a summer internship for Scouts at PWC is also being explored.
The partnership was publicly announced yesterday at the Barbados Boy Scouts’ annual Founder’s Day Service at the Garfield Sobers Sports Complex.
Senior partner of PWC Eastern Caribbean, Marcus Hatch, said that the partnership was formed through his company’s corporate responsibility programme, which was developed around what PWC’s management believe are society’s reasonable expectations of an organization.
Hatch indicated that the values of excellence, teamwork and leadership had been a part of scouting in Barbados from its inception almost 100 years ago. He commended the leaders of the association at all levels for their contribution to building the character of the some of the country’s young people.
“We ask our people to put into action every day the values of excellence, teamwork and leadership. Those who do not understand this will not succeed with us for long. And so it is with you. As Scouts, you practise self-reliance, you learn to take care of yourselves, even in physically challenging environments.
“You learn responsibility for leading others; you learn responsibility for leading others; you develop an understanding of, and respect for, the natural world we live in,” said the senior partner.
Giving the feature address on The Power Of Choice, Abundant Life Assembly senior pastor Dr Ivan Broomes noted that “everyone has a world view, whether or not we want to acknowledge we have one”.
He stressed that “ours is a time when the biblical world view is challenged. This world view that has shaped our beliefs and brought us to where we are as a nation is becoming less and less important and modernity seems to think that it is out of step with our times”.
Broomes suggested to the Scouts that they put their values before their choices. “What we choose can help us or hurt us . . . . I believe that God put us in this world to be happy and enjoy life. Happiness does not come from being rich, nor merely being successful in your career, nor being self-indulgent.
“One step towards happiness is to make yourself healthy and strong while you are a boy, so that you can be useful and so you can enjoy life when you are a man,” he said.
