Proud day for scouts as they receive awards from Regent

By ROSHIDI ABU SAMAH (TheStar)

SCOUTING is more than an extra-curricular activity to some.

For those like 19-year-old Ooi Ken Lin, it has taught him some of life’s most useful lessons.

“Scouting has changed my way of life.

King scout: (From left) Mohamad Arif Abdul Razak, T.Dineesh and Ooi admiring their king scout merit badge at the award ceremony.

“It was by being a scout that I learnt how to cook,” said the former SMK St George, Taiping student who joined the movement when he was in Form One.

Ooi was among 275 scouts from all over Perak who received their King Scout badges, which is the highest award for Senior Scouts, from the Raja Muda of Perak Raja Dr Nazrin Shah.

There are 27 badges to collect before one can qualify as a King Scout. Each badge is earned by passing particular tests.

State Education director Datuk Mohd Rauhi Mohd Isa was perhaps the proudest during the recent ceremony in Ipoh as he was bestowed the “Bintang Semangat Rimba Kelas Kedua — Perak” by the Regent for his contribution to the scouting movement.

The award is the fourth highest award by the Scout Association of Malaysia.

Earlier in his welcoming speech, Perak Scout Council chairman Datuk Ishak Mohamed said the King Scout recipients must continue to be active despite having received the highest achievement in the movement.

“Remember, once a scout, always a scout,” he said, adding that there were currently 332 scout groups with 13,912 members throughout the state.