A NIGHT around the campfire is a staple of any Guide troop, but thanks to the coronavirus, it’s not possible right now.
Well, almost.
A bright teenager from Hurst has ensured that her friends have been able to keep calm and firepit by going virtual.
Members of the 1st Hurst Guides have been belting out favourite songs like Ging Gang Gooley, Alice The Camel and You’ll Never Go To Heaven together despite not being able to hold their normal meetings.
And they’ve also been toasting marshmallows during the online catch-ups.
It’s all thanks to the efforts of the Guides’ young leader, 16-year-old Emma Vaughan. The student at Ranelagh School in Bracknell rose to the challenge of organising the fun through an online video session.
“It went really well. I wasn’t sure how it was going to work because of the time lag you get with these sessions. Repeat after me songs worked really well,” she said.
“The Guides shared the singing with their families at home – either with a campfire in the garden or a candle indoors.”
Emma is volunteering with the Guides as part of her work towards a coveted gold Duke of Edinburgh Award.
“It’s quite hard volunteering at the moment,” she said.
“I asked if there was anything I could do and one of our leaders, Wendy Gribble, suggested the virtual campfire singing.
“I sent the song words round in advance and each Guide chose a song to sing.”
The Guides are planning to hold more online gatherings.
It’s not the only virtual singalong that Emma has taken part in in recent days: just a few days before the campfire singing, Emma was practising online with fellow members of the Berkshire Youth Choir.
