Scouts to 'pay it forward' during Good Turn Week
'It's about the idea of giving to others without the expectation of having it returned to you,' says Scout
Sarah Savic Kallesoe has been a Scout since she was six, following in the footsteps of her father.
The Burnaby Rover Scout has long believed in the Scout's core values of community service, generosity, and being kind others.
Starting April 29, Kallesoe will be spreading good deeds during Scouts Canada's Good Turn Week — an annual event where Scouts take on different acts of kindness and participate in community-building activities.
"It's about the idea of giving to others without the expectation of having it returned to you," she told host Gloria Macarenko on CBC's Our Vancouver.
Some of the events in Vancouver include an umbrella-sharing project near the Commercial and Broadway SkyTrain Station and a clothing drive at Oppenheimer Park.
Life as a Scout
Kallesoe, 20, said Good Turn Week embodies the spirit that Scouts exhibit year round, often in other parts of the world. She's already been to Guatemala, Panama, Switzerland, and will be in Norway and Iceland this summer, and has participated in numerous community service projects abroad.
Kallesoe was a volunteer outdoor guide in Switzerland, training Scouts from all over the world. "My group had someone from Panama, from Canada, from Trinidad and Tobago and Belize."
She credits the Scouting movement with helping her to move outside her comfort zone, take on new skills, and meet new people.
"In the beginning it's very frightening because there is a lot of language barriers. But once you get passed that, you feel really at home."
Good Turn Week
While adventure is an important part of Scouting, Kallesoe said community service is fundamental.
This year, Scouts Canada has more than 30 community service projects nationwide as part of Good Turn Week. Eight are in the Greater Vancouver Area.
Kallesoe plans to clean up litter from the Quarry Rock trail near Deep Cove and hopes the public will take notice.
"We invite other people ... to join us and to be inspired by this idea of paying it forward," she said.
"We have such a beautiful province — but it will only stay beautiful if we work together to keep it clean."