Cooking was once a skill all Brownies and Guides used to dutifully learn. Now, thanks to Felton-based fuel company Rix Petroleum, members of one North Tyneside guide group will soon be able to sharpen their culinary skills using a state-of-the-art cooker and microwave.
1st Forest Hall Guides have won Rix’s ‘We Care’ competition, run though social media site Facebook and aimed at local community groups and charities.
The Guides attracted the most ‘likes’ on Rix’s website – 70 in total – meaning they bagged the prize of new equipment of their choice up to the value of £500.
Guide Leader Katrina Moffat, 35, said the money would go towards buying a new cooker and microwave for the centre where the Guides meet.
She said: “The cookers that are presently in the centre are a bit old and not really safe for younger people to cook on so we felt that they needed replacing before we could teach the girls cooking skills.
“They all love mucking in and making a mess so I really want them to cook, but obviously our first priority has to be their safety.”
1st Forest Hall Guides were set up in September 2012 and currently have around 32 members.
They run a number of activities for Guides, such as craft making, sports and days out during the school term time.
Ms Moffat said she was extremely pleased to win the competition as the group was becoming more popular and needed to raise funding.
“I was so pleased we won,” she said.
“Everyone worked really hard to highlight our entry and I badgered anyone I came across to vote. It all worked out in the end though and we’re all really pleased with the result.”
Tim Claxton, manager at Rix Petroleum’s Felton depot, said he was delighted for the Guide group.
He said: “Teaching young people new skills is precisely the type of activity our We Care competition is aimed at promoting. I hope that once the cooker and microwave are installed, 1st Forest Hall Guides get years of good fun, and good food, out of them.”
