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A TRIBUTE TO A SCOUT - Killed in Northern Ireland while serving the Queen.
If you asked him to travel one mile with you, he would willingly travel two, this was the type of Scout that Anthony Goodfellow was, and as his Scout Leader and friend for many years, it is fitting that I should write these words to pay tribute to a Queen's Scout, and Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award holder.
I, with many others of this District and St. Mary's Scouts and what was, in his day, Senior Scouts, had the privilege to know Tony as a Scout, Senior Scout and Assistant Cub Scout Leader.
The many camps he attended with me and others of the Movement, were memorable, and I can associate memories of him which will stay with me for a very long time, such as wrestling with others to see who was going to be thrown in an icy cold mountain stream at Kanderstag, Switzerland, or building a sledge for racing at Everdon camp, showing his sun-burnt body until it became so red from the sun that he had to put on a T-shirt. Being up to his knees in mud while on reception staff at the second Everdon Camp when the Chief Scout at that time, visited the County Camp, hikes in the Peak District on numerous occasions, or walking in the Berwyns and Snowdonia, or just pitching marquees!
Weekends at Grendon, canoeing or rock climbing, he could cook, make bridges, climb ropes or trees. Knew his First Aid by attending adult courses with St. John's Ambulance Brigade. Life was full of fun for him, he was a great 'get up and go' Scout.
I well remember the difficulties he had in achieving the time standards for Athletics when doing his D. of B. and Queen's Scout awards, and how much effort in training he did for this task. We still have signs on the Nissen hut floor where he dropped his bar weights while doing his weight lifting exercises. I could write a book of the happenings we all got up to in the days of Tony's Scouting. None earned his award more conscientiously than Tony.
To conclude, if one can be so bold, no finer epitaph than B.P.'s last message to Scouts, that our President, Mr G.W. Marriott, likes to read at the St. George's Day Services.
"I believe that God put us in this jolly world to be happy and enjoy life. Happiness doesn't come from being rich, nor merely from being successful in, your career, nor by self-indulgence. One step towards happiness is to make yourself healthy and strong while you are a boy, so that you can be useful and so can enjoy life when you are a man.
But the real way to get happiness is by giving happiness to other people. Try and leave this world a little better than you found it. 'Be prepared' in this way, to live happy and to die happy - stick to your Scout Promise always - even after you have ceased to be a boy - and God help you to do it. Your friend, Baden-Powell."
(Bill Knott, A.D.C. Scouts.) (Assistant County Comissioner V.S) [extracted from the scout newsletter]
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