Australian Plast members gather for Jubilee International Jamboree (01/27/02)

Australian Plast members gather for Jubilee International Jamboree

by George D. Fedyk
Special to The Ukrainian Weekly

ADELAIDE, Australia - Australian Ukrainian Scouts (Plastuny) gathered on December 26, 2001, for a Jubilee International Plast Jamboree to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization. The site chosen was Gillwell Park, a natural vegetation, eucalyptus-covered campsite located six kilometers from the hamlet of Gembrook in the Dandenong Ranges, 80 kilometers east of Melbourne.

Over 160 Australian and three North American Plast members participated in the Jamboree, which concluded on January 3. Participants came from most major urban centers of Australia: Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Geelong, Adelaide and Brisbane (some 1,700 kilometers away).

The president of the National Plast Executive in Australia, Bohdan Huzij of Sydney, together with Jamboree commandant Orest Popovych of Geelong (both members of the Lisovy Chorty fraternity), opened the Jamboree amid unseasonably wet and cold summer weather.

Participants ranged from the young "novatstvo" (to age 11) and "yunatstvo" (age 12-18), "starshi plastuny" (age 19-40), and seniors (over 40). There were also many private family groups that participated in the spirit of the jamboree, housed in what was dubbed the "tativka" (parent's camp).

Each age group had various distinct planned during the jamboree. The youngest were taught the values and procedures of Plast life and were cared for by a number of Plast counselors.

Of particular note, was one of the international participants, Roman Darewych of Toronto (a member of the Vovkulaky fraternity), devoted the majority of his time to the "novaky" especially in teaching them many Plast and Ukrainian songs and comical its. There was no doubt that "Bratchyk" Roman was the star of the novak camp. One of the many jamboree highlights was to see these youngest plastuny singing and thoroughly enjoying themselves during the course of the jamboree and campfire activities.

The novatstvo also participated in full day activities at a nearby native fauna park and riding on the local Puffing Billy steam train that runs through the temperate rainforest of the Dandenong ranges.

While the youngest were feted with fun and games, the lot of the "yunatstvo" was considerably harder. Much stricter requirements were imposed on these youths, to the extent that they even had to cook all their own meals. Only on a couple of occasions were they treated to good home cooking by the parents and seniors in the camp kitchen.

The program for yunatstvo was diverse and even challenging. During the early part of the jamboree, the teens learned practical methods of scouting and survival, orienteering and even participated in a commando "gauntlet" course. Other programs included camping, procedures and disciplines of Plast life, preparing for a show cabaret, a movie night, and New Year's festivities.

Among the counselors who led activities for the yunaky and yunachky were two other international jamboree participants: Danusia Snihur of Rochester, N.Y., and Roxolana Marmash of Toronto (a member of the Buryverkhy sorority).

On New Year's Day (after a long and enjoyable New Year's Eve celebration), all the yunatstvo and many starshi plastuny went on a two-and-a-half day hike through the Dandenong ranges and returned to the camp on the final day of the Jamboree. Carrying their own food supplies, tents and other equipment, their tasks and orienteering were made all the more difficult due to persistent rain. All in all, however, these young plastuny encountered the true nature and experience of practical scouting and were able to bond and form long-lasting friendships with their peers from all over Australia.

All young adult Plast members were involved in managing either the youth camps, and in the overall Jamboree administration. As for the seniors and parents, their roles were mainly to oversee Jamboree activities, passing on their experience to the younger plastuny, maintain medical facilities, conduct and be responsible for the overall camp guard duty, hold plenary meetings in mapping out the future of Plast in Australia, and maintain that the jamboree participants were well fed with a large number of mouth-watering culinary selections (i.e., KP duty).

During the course of the jamboree, a contingent of young adult and senior members of Plast journeyed 50 kilometers through forests of native mountain ash trees (growing to over 40 meters in height) to the nearby Ukrainian Youth Association (SUM) camp at Buxton, to pay their respects to the national camp of their sister organization. SUM Camp Commandant Stefan Romaniw, who is also the head of the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organizations, the governing Ukrainian body in Australia, welcomed and greeted the plastuny at the SUM Open Day parade and invited them to participate in the SUM "Sviatyi vechir" (their camp's Christmas Eve celebrations) that evening.

During the parade, the head of the National Plast Executive in Australia, Mr. Huzij, reciprocated and invited the SUMivtsi to attend the Plast Open Day the following day.

The Plast Open Day turned out to be one of the few days of bright and warm sunshine. Approximately 20 SUM members attended along with almost 200 people from Melbourne's Ukrainian community. Plastuny paraded for their guests, while one of the highlights of the parade was the showing-off and friendly rivalry of starshi plastuny and seniors of various Plast fraternities and sororities.. Among the well-represented groups were: Braty Mogl, Lisovi Chorty, Chervoni Maky and Stepovi Vidmy fraternities, but it was the Chornomortsi and Chornomorski Khvyli (sea scouting groups) who stole the show and brag honors for the day.

On a couple of occasions campfires featuring performances were held. Even though it was in the middle of summer, which usually is very dry, large open central fires were allowed, due to the heavy rainfalls. These get-togethers allowed Plast members of all ages to communally participate and perform old and newly learned songs to guitar and accordion accompaniment, to perform various acts and its, and to generally enhance the Plast spirit.

Undoubtedly, the social nexus of the Jamboree was within the confines of the kitchen building and marquee annex. It was here that Plast members from all over Australia were able to mingle, relax and rekindle old friendships and create new ones. Such was the success of this "kitchen-set" that in years to come this UMPZ will certainly be remembered for its numerous late-night sing-along sessions and the many creative late-night snacks.

However, it was not all fun and games for the seniors during the camp. On the second to last day, a group of 21 intrepid seniors braved the elements and comforts of camp and went on a bus tour of the local wineries located within the Yarra Valley. The ostensible purpose of this fact-finding mission was to survey potential future hiking trails but, as this author can attest, the less strenuous activities of wine and cheese tasting took precedence over orienteering concerns.

During the course of the jamboree, the Australian Plast Museum, which is located in Adelaide, exhibited numerous philatelic souvenirs from past International Jubilee Plast Jamborees held in Australia dating back to 1957 for the 45th anniversary of Plast. This exhibition in particular provided an interesting highlight during the Open Day with many former and current plastuny reminiscing and talking about past camps, friendships and experiences.

The general consensus was that the 2001-2002 International Jubilee Plast Jamboree was very positive. Although participant numbers were slightly lower than expected, all who did show thoroughly enjoyed themselves during the nine-day event. Even though the location and the facilities were a bit spartan (made worse by the inclement weather), it enabled the participants to excel in their practical and common sense skills.

One of the highlights of the jamboree was waking up every morning to the sound of Australia's native songbird - the kookaburra. It was quite something to be able to get within inches of this native bird and to observe it in its natural habitat. Since the jamboree was located in a National Park, other native animals - kangaroos, wombats and a plethora of bird life - were often seen around the camp environs. Without a doubt it is some of these nature highlights that will remain fondly embedded in each participant's memory.

One of the highlights for this author was being able to interview some of the North American participants. Mr. Darewych, a Torontonian who has been working in Sydney, expressed his delight when comparing Plast camps in North America and Australia, stating that they are very similar, and that the fraternity and welcome of Plastuny is universal. Stating that he had a truly great and enjoyable time, he expressed wonderment at having a camp at this "unique time of year" (December is summertime in Australia, while it is the middle of winter in North America). He was also able to convey cordial greetings from the National Plast Executive of Canada to the Australian Executive.

Ms. Marmash, also of Toronto, who is travelling the world and was taking a holiday in Australia, also commented on the similarities between Plast in Canada and Australia. She stated that she was very impressed with the organizational skills of the Australian plastuny and felt quite at home with both the camp and her fellow Plast members. Of particular interest to the Lisovy Chorty fraternity was that Roxolana's paternal grandfather, Roman Marmash (who died during World War II), was one of the 11 founding members of the fraternity in Lviv.

At the closing ceremony of the 90th Anniversary International Plast Jamboree, the head of the National Plast Executive in Australia, Mr. Huzij, declared the jamboree ended, and called all Plast members to convene again in five year's time in Adelaide to commemorate Plast's 95th anniversary.

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