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Scouts' honour... Canada Post issues a stamp to mark 100 years of Scouting

July 18, 2007

It's been around for 100 years… Scouts' honour. To this day, thousands of Canadian youth follow the basic Scouting principles established in 1907 - and on July 25, Canada Post will issue a commemorative stamp to celebrate this milestone.

In 1876, then-19-year-old army officer Robert Baden-Powell conceived the notion of training men in Scouting.

His unorthodox methods proved successful when practiced in small units with one leader. Scouting officially began in 1907, when Lord Robert Baden-Powell held the first Scouting encampment at Brownsea Island, England. Baden-Powell was the author of many books; his first was Scouting for Boys, written in 1908. Canadians have had the pleasure of receiving Lord Baden-Powell on several occasions. He first visited Canada in 1910, where he participated in the opening ceremonies of the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto. He returned in 1919 and 1923. His final visit was in 1935 for a lengthy cross-Canada tour beginning in Victoria, followed by Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa and Moncton. Baden-Powell lived his last years in Nyeri, Kenya, where he died in 1941.

The Scout Movement uses a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcrafting, aquatics, hiking, backpacking, and sports. A widely recognized part of the Scout movement is the uniform, which was designed with an eye to promoting equality and obscuring differences in social standing.

Today, some 78,000 boys and girls enjoy Scouting in Canada, under the auspices of Scouts Canada and L'Association des scouts du Canada. The current Chief Scout in Canada is Her Excellency Michaëlle Jean, our Governor General. Another 28 million members participate in Scouting in 155 countries and territories worldwide.

The foreground of the stamp features a tree-like structure which designer Matthias Reinecke explains has multiple layers in meaning. It represents the growth of Scouts as an organization and also reflects teamwork, which is an integral part of Scouting. The background features the logo of the organization along with photos depicting canoeing, cycling, camping and campfire-related activities; all four are typical Scouting activities.

Using seven-colour lithography on Tullis Russell paper, Lowe-Martin printed four million stamps, sold in booklets of eight, measuring 38.25mm x 38.25mm (square). The domestic rate 52-cent stamps are simulated kiss cut; general tagged on all sides, and backed with pressure sensitive P.V.A. gum. The Official First Day Cover will bear the cancel BELLEFEUILLE, QC.

Additional information about Canadian stamps can be found in the Newsroom section of Canada Post's website, and downloadable high-resolution photos of these new stamps are in the Newsroom's Photo Centre. Stamps and Official First Day Covers will be available at participating post offices, or can be ordered online by following the links at Canada Post's website www.canadapost.ca, or by mail order from the National Philatelic Centre. From Canada and the USA, call toll-free: 1-800-565-4362, and from other countries, call: 902 863-6550.