SCOUTS in Hemyock celebrated St George’s Day at the weekend with a service in St Mary’s Church attended by 120 family members and friends.

St George’s Day was on Wednesday, April 26, and the service was held on the Saturday, before which the 1st Hemyock troop paraded from the village primary school to the church with colours fluttering in the breeze.

The service was led by Becky Doble, a member of the local lay clergy team and among the songs sung were ‘One More Step Along The Road I Go’ and ‘I Vow To Thee My Country’.

The scouts’ acting group lead volunteer Julie Jennings gave a short talk before the young people renewed their scouting promises.

A reading was then given by a scout leader and prayers were written and read by group members.

A talk by Rikki, aka John Northam, caught the attention of the congregation as he spoke on the history of St George and of the Hemyock Scout Group.

He told of pioneering and included an activity of rope lashing, something which is particularly popular with Danish scouts with whom the Hemyock group has shared a 50-year exchange partnership.

There was a period of ‘wonderful, organised chaos’ as youngsters and adults rope lashed and then walked around the church showing off their scouting handicraft skills.

Awards were presented and a retiring collection of £116 was taken, which will be given to the scout group’s chosen charity, the Myanmar Disaster Fund.

Anybody interested in helping the scout group, which works with more than 100 young people from the area in its five groups, squirrels, beavers, cubs, scouts, and explorers, either in uniformed or non-uniformed roles, or even as an occasional helper, should email Ms Jennings at [email protected] for more information.