Taking up the Challenge

Over the last few months, we've put out a few challenges across the country.  The Buy-A-Brick Campaign, running a program jumpstart, spreading the word about Madagascar 2012, and more.  Here's the story of how one group in Ottawa, Ontario got involved in the project.

The 123rd Nepean Scouts had been hearing about Madagascar 2012 on and off from their Scouters, and were intrigued by the idea of Madagascar.  They were initially surprised when they learned that lemurs actually existed and weren't just created for the animated movies.  When Scoutrees came along this year, they were issued a challenge by one of the participants in Madagascar 2012.  Because some of the money from Scoutrees goes to the Canadian Scout Brotherhood Fund, and it is this fund that pays for the materials for the project, they were told that if any of them collected $100, the participant would send them a postcard from Madagascar as a thank you.

It doesn't sound like much, does it?  One hundred dollars flows pretty quickly through our fingers these days, and a postcard hardly seems like a reason to put out any extra effort, but that wasn't the point.  What we saw was a group of Scouts who were suddenly determined to raise money for a construction project they might never see.  The dormitories and the campus in Ambato Boeni are thousands of kilometres from St Stephen's Anglican Church in Ottawa, where the Scouts meet, but they saw a purpose in raising this money that was greater than themselves.

They learned more about Madagascar 2012 and about the Canadian Scout Brotherhood Fund.  They talked to St. Stephen's Church, and coordinated a fundraiser where they would set up information tables after church services in order to receive pledges for Scoutrees and tell people what the money was going to do.  They took action to make a difference because, suddenly, the matter was personal.  They had  a connection to the project and they saw that they could directly impact people's lives in Madagascar.  What we saw though, was a group of Scouts who have learned that they don't have to be adults in order to make a difference.  The 123rd Nepean Scouts have already changed the world for good.

Do you have a good story about how your group has become part of Madagascar 2012?  We want to hear all about it!  Contact us and tell us your story!