Eurasia for the first time welcomed DESMOS meeting

On March 22-25, 2012 for the first time in the history of the International Network of Orthodox Christian Scouts DESMOS, the annual meeting of its Committee was held in the Eurasia Scout Region - in Kyiv, Ukraine.

During the meeting a wide range of issues was discussed: results and plans of DESMOS, including international scouting events in 2012-2015, fundraising, development of contacts between the NSO - members of the Link, the dialogue with the Church in the area of youth education, and expansion of spiritual dimension of the Scout program. The Committee also elected Marko Petrovic (Serbia) as new President of DESMOS.

Committee Meeting was held in the Holy Dormition Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra - the sacred place of world Orthodoxy.

Participants were received and blessed by the Head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church Metropolitan Volodymyr. In his welcoming remarks, His Blessedness said that working with young people was a holy deed and wished God's help to scouts.

Committee members also had meeting with the only archbishop of Ukrainian Orthodox Church who is a scout - Archbishop Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky and Vishenky Olexander. During this meeting the participants exchanged views on the various possibilities of the spiritual education of youth.

National Organization for Scouts of Ukraine as a host has made every effort the meeting of the executive body of the International Link of Orthodox Scouts of 23 countries, including six countries of the region of Eurasia, was an effective and interesting. Members of DESMOS Committee were not only able to touch the ancient history of Kyiv - the mother of Russian cities, but also to get acquainted with different approaches of spiritual education, used in the Ukrainian scouting, which this year celebrates its centenary.

The next meeting of the DESMOS Committee will take place in Cyprus in 2013.