Ten amazing young people from Perth and Kinross are travelling all the way to South Korea for a major Scout Association event in summer 2023.
And the teenagers are beginning their challenge of raising the money to go to Asia with a spectacular race of 2000 yellow plastic ducks down the River Tay.
The scouts from all parts of Perthshire are a proportion of the 36 who have been picked to represent the East of Scotland contingent at the 25th World Scout Jamboree, a huge event for 14 to 17-year-olds held every four years that gathers around 40,000 young people from every country and culture for a 12-night camping trip of a lifetime.
Altogether, around 200 young people from Scotland have been successful in gaining a place by excelling
at special WSJ selection camps which involved thousands of hopefuls.
Perth and Kinross can be rightly proud to have 10 local kids get through.
Previous WSJs have been to the USA and before that Japan and Sweden.
The Perth and Kinross group going to Korea in August 2023 have their minds on hot humid days (everyone will be wearing kilts), K-pop music, spicy Korean barbecue cooking and, most importantly, raising the money needed to make such an ambitious trip.
Each of the 36 from East Scotland needs to raise close to £4000 which will cover transport, training camps, food, equipment, and part of it supports Scouts from poorer nations to attend.
So the WSJ boys and girls have been coming up with fundraising ventures to make their South Korean travel dreams come true. Having formed an umbrella grouping – WSJ 2023 Perth and Kinross Fundraising Group – they plan all kinds of activities from barbecues to bake sales and have set up a GoFundMe page.
Money collected on this appeal is being split 50:50 between two causes – supporting young people to participate in the 2023 World Scouts Jamboree in Korea and the Teenage Cancer Trust.
In less than a week’s time, they plan to make a splash in Perth when they unleash 2000 yellow bath ducks down the River Tay to create the biggest possible duck race on Easter Saturday.
All over Perthshire right now, the WSJ Korea candidates are selling tickets for the race at £2 a duck.
The public can come and see the exciting water battle of speed and chance, cheering on the ducks to cross the finish line from 3pm on Saturday.
The 2000 plastic ducks will be let off from Smeaton’s Bridge and make the dash to the finish at the next major river crossing along at Queen’s Bridge.
The ‘owner’ of the winning duck will go home with a £300 prize, £200 is being given away to the duck number finishing second and £100 for third place. A special mention goes to Haddow Bathrooms and Kitchens for sponsoring the event and allowing the group to offer such fantastic cash prizes.
From 12pm on Saturday the WSJ 2023 scouts will be running a tempting refreshments stall with drinks and homemade cookies and cakes outside St Matthew’s Church in Tay Street for what looks likely to be a very entertaining event.
The PA salutes the 10 youngsters from the Perth and Kinross area who made the grade to attend WSJ23.
In alphabetical order they are: Cameron Anderson, Alasdair Dawes, Reece Drummond, Jamie Gorton, Emily McGregor, Archie Mitchell, Sarah O’Flynn, Hannah Pereira, Tavish Tares and Christina Tarongi.
As well as the 10 mentioned above, there are five local young adult helpers making the trip.
Jamie’s dad, scout leader Stephen Gorton, spoke for the 15 local families who make up a big part of the 36-strong East of Scotland contingent.
He said: “We support young people in Scouting across Perth and Kinross.
“We are part of the largest mixed volunteer-led movement for young people in Scotland, the UK and our planet and right now we are fundraising to help up to 15 young people go to the World Scout Jamboree in Korea.
“With all the challenges we face together, helping 40,000 young people to develop a better understanding of needs, cultures and beliefs has got to be a good thing for us all.”
• There’s still time to buy a ticket to participate in the Perth duck race. See the social media pages — Facebook www.facebook.com/groups/wsj2023perthandkinross and Instagram www.instagram.com/wsjperthshire2023/ - to find out where you can buy one or, better still, come along on Saturday.
• The official website for the 2023 South Korea World Scout Jamboree event is at http://www.2023wsjkorea.org/. Anyone wanting to help the WSJ scouts live their dream can contribute the appeal at www.gofundme.com/f/perth-and-kinross-world-scout-jamboree-2023.
