Discovery Scout group hosts surprise party for 80 year old
Ken surprised with a birthday party for his 80th
The 1st Discovery Group honoured Ken Stanton recently, by hosting a surprise party for his 80th birthday.
The birthday celebrations were in the form of a campfire, attended by many of the the scouts who have turned 18 and are now working and studying. These youngsters took time out to pop in and wish Ken a happy birthday and to thank him for being part of their lives.
Doctor Brendon Hausberger, the Chief Scout of South Africa, also attended the party and said, “The first time I met Ken, I was your age. I was never afraid of him, but I had a lot of respect for him.” Brendon also thanked Ken for the outstanding role he played in Scouting.
During the campfire celebrations, another scouter, Craig Slabbert, was presented with his Springbok badge and, in true 1st Discovery Scout group fashion, Ken also handed him a tent peg to commemorate this achievement.
Ken joined the scouts’ 1st Crown Mines group when he was only 16 years old. He became a Scouter in the same troop and was later appointed as the Assistant District Commissioner for Scouts in the Old Geldenhuis district (later known as the North West and then the Delta district). He was the District Commissioner there for a number of years, before joining the 1st Discovery group in 1991.
At the Discovery group, Ken started out as an Assistant Troop Scouter and then moved on to become the Troop Scouter. He was appointed as the Assistant Provincial Commissioner for Scouts of Transvaal, but returned to the 1st Discovery Group a few years ago, as the Group Scouter. During this time he was still actively involved with both the boys’ and girls’ troops, and in 2014 he was awarded his 60 years’ service bar.
He was also awarded the Silver Protea award for his services to Scouting.
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