In Honor of Founder’s Day – A message from WOSM Secretary General and Chairperson of the World Scout Committee

On 22 February every year, millions of Scouts around the world gather at local, national and international levels to celebrate Founder’s Day. It is the birthday of Lord Baden-Powell (1857-1941), the pioneer of Scouting. Founder’s Day is a crucial event in the Scouting calendar when members renew their Scout Promise reaffirming their commitment to the core values of the Movement. Here is a joint message from Simon Rhee, Chairperson of the World Scout Committee and Scott Teare, Secretary General of World Scouting on the occasion of Founder’s Day 2013.

Dear Brother and Sister Scouts,

We send our best wishes to all of you on Founder’s Day and wish to share a short message in honor of Baden-Powell, known to many as the Man of Peace.

Longing for peace after three years of war, B-P wrote (in 1917), “The roots of Scouting have grown among young people of all civilized countries and are developing each day. It might be thought that if in the years to come, a considerable proportion of the future citizens of each nation forms part of this brotherhood, they will be joined by a bond of personal friendship and mutual understanding such as has never existed before, which will help to find a solution to terrible international conflicts.”

Following the war, Baden-Powell assigned a new mission to Scouting: To strive for and maintain peace. From that moment the Founder visited other countries continuously, encouraging National Scout Organizations to educate for peace and understanding between peoples.

It is in this spirit that we celebrate Founder’s Day and invite you to become a Messenger of Peace. If you (or your Scout group) have performed a service project – whether it was large or small – to help improve your community, serve other people, or promote the idea of peace… then please go to www.scoutmessengers.org and tell us what you did! It’s easy to do and your posting will show the whole world that you are supporting the very ideals of our dear Founder.

Thank you for all that you do to help promote peace.

Image 2: Simon Hang-Bock Rhee
Chairperson, World Scout Committee

Image 3: Scott A. Teare
Secretary General

Watch the video of Scott Teare, Secretary General of WOSM