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27th July marks the 60th anniversary of Iona Scouts, which they will celebrate by hosting an open day at their den. They have been busy digging through old photos and memorabilia from storage, finding the process fascinating as they learn about their history – such things as how Iona Scouts started, where the group’s name came from, what activities were done in years gone by and a particular highlight was finding out about past fundraisers. The Scout group, led by their founders the late Shirley and Bob Goddard, were passionate about raising funds to build the Blockhouse Bay Community Centre. In honour of the work of they did, the Iona Scouts Den located in the basement of the Community Centre is named The Shirley and Bob Goddard Scout Hall. The group have had some interesting fundraisers over the years, such as the “Chooky-Poo” fundraiser. According to Allan Goddard, Shirley and Bob’s son, this was a real winner for the group and ran for 18 years. It began in 1966, originally buying in and re-bagging bulk manufactured fertiliser into smaller 10lb bags to sell. They switched to selling fowl manure in the mid ‘70s when the manufactured fertiliser became uneconomic.  The original 'Chooky Poo' flyer from 1985 Other fundraisers around the same time were “Bobs for jobs” week, and their thrice-yearly bottle drive. In 1975 they ran a golf day, raising $631. A later bulk buy and rebag project was mandarins and oranges, sourced from Kerikeri. The Scouts were also involved in various community fairs including running the white elephant stall at the Iona Church fair for many years, and one at the Blockhouse Bay Primary School.
Back to the present and times have changed, with a myriad of different opportunities available nowadays for groups to raise funds. Iona Scouts are the fortunate recipients of two new sewing machines thanks to the Trusts Million Dollar Mission.  Iona Scouts received two sewing machines thanks to the Trusts Million Dollar Mission. And this month a new fundraiser is happening David from fotoman is holding a family photo shoot at the scout den, with a minimum of 10% of sales going to Iona Scouts (see details later on this page). Iona Scouts are keen to share their history, with lots photos and memorabilia on display at their open day showcasing how much things have changed over time. There will also be plenty of fun activities available for people to join in, to experience firsthand the type of things the group enjoys on a regular basis. A great opportunity for families who are curious about scouts to check out whether it’s something they would like to be involved in. Times have definitely changed; however, some things remain constant such as the friendships, sense of adventure, and passion to learn, and these will continue into the future.
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