Written by Kaleb Phoon, Edited by Chey Jedd
On 12 November 2022 at 8 a.m., 180 scouts across Singapore attended the Chief Commissioner’s Award Ceremony at Yuan Ching Secondary School.
The Chief Commissioner’s Award is conferred to Singapore Scout Association’s most outstanding and distinctive Scouts in recognition of their exemplary performance, dedication, as well as their service to scouting. It is the pinnacle of achievement and 12 of our Level 4 Scouts were proudly presented with the Chief Commissioner’s Award. Below are the words of the 2021 Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, current Venture Chairperson and recipient of the Chief Commissioner's Award Kaleb Phoon.
Our Journey
As the batch that has gone through and is still currently going through the COVID-19 pandemic, many may think that our experiences are dulled down, with us missing out on countless physical camps and training. However, I beg to differ. In fact, our experiences are unique as compared to other batches.
In true Catholic High Scouting spirit, we continued on with our training, just that it was online, refusing to allow the pandemic to dampen our spirits and dictate what we can learn and do as a Troop, hence allowing us to continue moving forward in our pursuit of improvement. We even held an online version of our annual June Camp in the form of a “June Challenge” which lasted throughout the month of June. These unique experiences played a crucial role in shaping our years of scouting, leaving us with memories etched in our minds, despite the situations we faced.
Despite the different experiences we faced as a batch, one thing remains constant: Our Scouting Spirit. This Scouting Spirit, along with our Troop values, are ingrained in each one of us and will serve to push us forward in our different aspects of life.
With our spirits high and wanting to bring honour to the Troop that gave us plenty, we applied for the Chief Commissioner's Award. And I am proud to say that Law Jia Jun, Kaleb Joshua Phoon, Lucas Kong Yue Yang, Wyatt Ooi Exuan, Tay Wei Jie Jaydon, Chen Bo Jin, Kaden Teo Kai Jun, Javier Loo Qi Wen, Sim Hon Jui, Gan Chee Kae, Isaac Lam Wee An, and Fang Xuhui, have all successfully attained the Chief Commissioner's Award. I will forever express my gratitude towards my family, peers and mentors who guided and supported us on our journeys.
Photo by Dylan Gregory Tan De
Attaining the Award
To me, attaining the award is merely the fruit of our labour for these past 4 years, simply reinforcing all the effort we had put into scouting. Instead, the more important aspects would be the process in which we had worked hard for not only this award, but also through the different scouting activities. That in itself would be my word of advice to all future awardees.
An award may look good on your shelf, in your portfolio, etc., but never let the award consume you, instead focus on the things that really count; the joy when you learn a new skill, the bonds you build alongside your fellow brother-in-arms, the hearts that you have touched through your service, etc. The journey that you have gone through which led to you attaining the award, that is what truly matters.
With that, I congratulate all 12 awardees from Catholic High Scout Group and also the awardees from all Scout Troops, for putting in the work and working hard to attain this award.
Note: Some awardees were unavailable during photoshoot