The unit numbers have dwindled to a small group of friends ... but they have shown resolve and determination to build up the 44th to its former glories. No summer trip - instead Sully mobilised his team - and family! - to repair and smarten up the "Hut". Much painting inside and out; a long-overdue clear-out and re-ordering of the unit stores and store cupboard; old favourites in the furniture line long-condemned and eaten by woodworm consigned to the bonfire; guttering and drain pipes repaired to gush the heavy rains away from the building instead of into it; the main door step replaced, sealed and painted; the BBQ patio finally completed and a huge amount of the "Mound" dug out and removed to various sites around the school field.By the time the new school year was underway there still remained a few key areas needing attention but at least the concerted effort had got things moving - thanks mostly to Chris Sullivan's quiet determination to set things back in order and put the 44th back firmly 'on the map' as an integral part of the school's extra-curricular and character-building activities.
Oh yes; this year the local wasp legions made the roof and cavity wall space of the hut a fortress for their legions - the canoe shelter was declared a "no-go" area as the little black and yellow perils swarmed in and out of the hut through a couple of unused bolt holes in the concrete support pillars. A quiet background hum that was not electrical told of their ever-increasing presence! Fortunately only a few itinerants managed to squeeze their way inside via the light fittings. Casualties (on the Explorer side) were painful but light.
To find out more about wasps, check out the website How Wasps Work