RUBY Gerakis and Jordison Stewart are the first Swan Hill Girl Guides to earn the Junior BP Award since 2003.
Ruby, 12, and Jordison, 9, renewed their Guide promise and undertook the completion of 12 challenges across six core focus areas that underpin Guiding in August last year.
Ruby enjoyed the prospect of enshrining her involvement in the Guides for years to come with the inclusion of her name on the plaque in the Guide Hall.
“My favourite challenges were tracking skills and making a meal on a fire because I like being outdoors,” she said.
“I also liked the World Guiding challenges, because we got to learn Morse Code and about other countries.
“We did a world theme sleepover, where every group was a different country and made food; we were Italy and made pizza.”
Jordi was excited for her name to appear on the plaque alongside her mother Stacey Paynter, who achieved the Junior BP Award in 2000.
“I enjoyed putting together a Christmas skit with Ruby as part of one of the challenges; we got our Guide leader Leone to be on stage as well,” she said.
“I struggled with the recycling task where I had to bring in materials and make them into something else – I brought in used cans to make a telephone and it was harder than I thought it would be.”
District manager and Swan Hill Guides unit leader Leone Walbran said the two Guides had to show organisation and persistence, especially when things did not go to plan.
“We are very excited to finally add Ruby and Jordi’s names to the honour board, and Jordi is especially pleased to join her mother on the board,” she said.
“We are always able to welcome any girls aged seven to 15 that would like to join us in having fun, learning new skills, developing leadership and challenging themselves.”
The Junior BP Award is the first of three major awards that Girl Guides can earn, starting from age seven, followed by the BP Award from age 10 and the Queen’s Guide Award from age 14.
The awards are named for Lord Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of both Scouts and Girl Guides.
These awards also coincide with the bronze, silver and gold Endeavour awards, which form the foundation of the Duke of Edinburgh International Award.
Any girls that are interested in joining can contact the Swan Hill Girl Guides can go along to their weekly Tuesday night meeting.
