In memory of Brian Watson, who passed away 16th September 2014
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Like many people who became involved in Scouting, Brian's is a familiar story. He came along to Sawston Cubs on a pack night, so that his son Neil could join and chatted to the leader at the time. Shortly after that, Brian learnt that the pack would soon be without a leader so the community person he was, Brian volunteered to help out. Helping out turned into being the Cub Scout Leader for over 25 years and a major part of 1st Sawston Scout Group.
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Many of the children who have previously been to Cubs now have children of their own and all will have good memories of superbly organised fun pack nights, district events with other Cub packs and summer camps every year. Those there on the night will never forget the Apollo launch night outside the Church Hall, with a rocket sledge running on a system of ropes and pulleys, propelling blindfolded and helmeted Cubs the length of the building! It was a brilliant example of Brian's DIY inventive skills. On another occasion we were all impressed by his ingenuity in making bench tables out of a single piece of plywood, with a coat of varnish and a hole for a parasol they were so good that you could have them in your own garden, never mind on camp for which he had made them.
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Always up for a challenge, Brian decided that one year we would have a different camp, not in this country but we would take a group of boys on a group passport, on a train to London, tube across London, another train to the coast then a ferry to The Netherlands; Sawston's first international camp! Of course, it was a great success. This was followed by another successful trip to Europe with the group's involvement in the Sawston-Selsingen twinning anniversary; Brian's planning and organisation again were key.
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2007 was the Centenary anniversary of Scouting and a large group of Sawston youth enjoyed a brilliant day of funfair rides, a simulator experience and activity events at Sawston Village College. The costs was substantial but how many realised that this was possible mainly due to Brian's drive to fund the event from Lottery grants.
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Brian willingly gave so much of his time to Scouting but we are sure he was rewarded by the satisfaction of simply being part of something he thoroughly enjoyed. After his stint as Cub Scout Leader, Brian became involved with Granta Scout District taking on the role of Assistant District Commissioner Cubs and Group Scout Leader for us in Sawston. He also spent many weekends at Abington campsite as Duty Warden and on working parties for the upkeep of the site. He volunteered to be part of the team every time the county CamJam took place in Peterborough, giving hundreds of children a fun-packed long weekend at the county showground. This is also in addition to the time Brian spent actively involved with our own group fundraising committee.
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The Scout motto is 'be prepared'. Well that was Brian in everything he did. Sadly though none of us could have been prepared for the news of his illness two years ago and his passing. More than one person has said that Brian was the glue that held 1st Sawston Scout Group together, a fitting tribute to a man who everyone seemed to rely on to get things done. Tracking is a Scouting activity where trails are laid in the form of signs for others to follow. The trail ends with a circle of stones or sticks with one stone in the middle. It simply means Gone Home, and now it's Brian's time to go home. He will be sorely missed by the group and our heartfelt sympathies go out to his family.
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At Brian's funeral, over £900 was collected in memory of him and given to the Arthur Rank Hospice.
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