I was honoured to receive the Bronze Wolf from the World Scouting today. The citation made me blush.
CITATION FOR THE AWARD OF THE BRONZE WOLF
CANDIDATE: John May
Country: United Kingdom
John May has dedicated his life to serving youth worldwide, not solely in Scouting but by creating opportunities for young people and mentoring and coaching them to achieve their full potential. Professionally this commitment was recognised by his country when he received the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion in recognition of his dedication to enterprise education.
John has held leadership positions since 1982 at Group, District, County and UK levels. These roles have included being District Commissioner, a Trustee, Chair of the Program and Development Committee as well as International Commissioner and an elected member of The Council of The Scout Association United Kingdom.
During his time as International Commissioner, and afterwards, John participated in several European seminars events and engaged in the review of the ‘Europe for You’ program for older Scouts. He was the UK Contingent Leader to the 18th World Scout Jamboree in the Netherlands and a member of the Organising Committee of the 21st World Scout Jamboree in the UK, 2007. He was the liaison person between the World Scout Committee and 23rd World Scout Jamboree, 2015 in Japan where he contributed significantly to the planning, implementation and reviewing of this event.
Currently John is the Chairman of Oxfordshire County Scout Council, leading an Executive Committee that manages finances and assets as well as provision of support to develop and grow Scouting across the County.
His professional background in formal and non-formal education has also benefited Scouting globally. John is currently the Secretary General of the Duke of Edinburgh Award International Foundation, which coordinates The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award worldwide. He has actively created strong links between the International Award and Scouting in many countries where youth members are able to access the award independently or because of completing the top Scout Award in their country.
John combines youthful enthusiasm with sound thinking and excellent organisational skills. Between 2004 and 2007 John was a member of the Educational Methods Group (EMG) contributing significantly to human rights and youth participation initiatives. These aspects have been built upon are now an established part of the scout youth program.
In 2008, he was elected to the World Scout Committee serving two terms. His previous youth program work on the EMG was consolidated. During his second term, from 2011 to 2014 he assumed additional responsibilities as first Vice-Chairperson, where his leadership and influential skills were evident as the World Scout Committee undertook significant issues including the reorganisation of the World Scout Bureau, resulting in the establishment of the Global Support Centres in Kuala Lumpur and Geneva. John was also instrumental in the process of outlining the requirements for the appointment of a new Secretary General. His cultural awareness, sincerity and impartiality helped smooth many waves and unite World Scouting during often challenging times. When his term ended in 2014, John continued to work on behalf of the World Scout Committee as liaison person for the 23rd World Scout Jamboree in Japan.
At the World level, John continues as a volunteer for the World Scout Committee and leads the Human Rights and Peace Education Unit within the Innovating Scouting Work Stream. John has dedicated his life to serving youth worldwide, not solely in Scouting but by creating opportunities for young people and mentoring and coaching them to achieve their full potential. Professionally this commitment was recognised by his country when he received the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion in recognition of his dedication to enterprise education. In 2015, John was awarded the Silver Wolf by the Chief Scout of The Scout Association ‘in recognition of services to Scouting of the most exceptional nature’.
He has attended seven World Scout Conferences, six World Scout Jamborees, and many Regional Scout Conferences around the World as well as Caribbean Chief Commissioners’ Conferences.
John continues to be a great role model to young people and adults alike and promotes the value of youth involvement in decision making, as can be evidenced through his enormous contributions from the age of 27 as International Commissioner. He has always actively supported region and global issues, always living to his Scout Promise and Law and exemplifying Scouting values. His contributions are selfless and immeasurable. John has always been a valuable, informed and contributing team player. He advocates transparency and accountability in all decisions and reflected these principles and provided explanations for decisions at public forums held at regional and world gatherings.
We commend John May for his outstanding service to World Scouting and recommend that he be a most worthy recipient of the Bronze Wolf.
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