Hay River mother brings Beaver Scouts program to town

Hay River now has a Beaver Scouts program, thanks to the efforts of local mother Stephanie Haas. 

"When my son was about two years old, I went investigating about Beavers, because I remember Beavers from when I was a child — my brother was in Beavers and I was in Brownies,” said Haas, a classroom teacher who is originally from Nova Scotia. “I discovered there wasn’t a Beaver program [in Hay River].

"That would have been three years ago, and I said, when my son turns five, I’m going to start a Beaver program. He turned five this September, so I started everything back in June of this year.”

Beaver Scouts, which is overseen by Scouts Canada, has existed since the early 1970s. It is intended for children aged five to seven, and aims to help participants develop "a respect for nature and others while exploring the world around them," according to the Scouts Canada website.

The Hay River Beaver Scouts will have their first hour-long meeting at 5:00 pm on Nov. 4 at Princess Alexandra School. Meetings will occur at the same time and place every Monday from there.

Currently, the program has two leaders — referred to as "Scouters" — in Haas and fellow Hay River mother Shailyn Atwell.

Scouts Canada only allows eight Beavers per Scouter, so the Hay River program currently as a capacity of 16 kids. However, there was still room for new additions as of Sept. 30, and the capacity could increase if other adults volunteer as Scouters. 

"I've had some interest in it [from other potential Scouters]," said Haas. "There's a process to become one, which is really nice. We have to pass a criminal record check, we have to do an interview, and we have to do some training before we can go forward. There are some other individuals who have started that process, so hopefully we'll have more."

Hay River’s Beavers will participate in a wide range of activities. Many of those activities will take participants out on the land, which Haas believes will be particularly enriching in a place with the natural splendour of the NWT. 

“My brother, [as a Beaver] in rural Nova Scotia, wouldn’t have had the same opportunities on the land as these kids do," said Haas. "We want to take advantage. We want to bring in Elders, we want to be able to get out on the land, maybe do some trapping, learn about the animals in the area, go snowshoeing. There’s so many opportunities that are unique to the territory.

“I’ve been talking with Shailyn, my other Scouter, about things that we can be doing."

While Haas and Atwell will lead the program, the kids involved will actually have quite a bit of say in the kind activities they undertake together. 

"The Beaver program is an opportunity to do something that they have control over," Haas said. "The program has kind of shifted over the years, where they take something called the Canadian path. It’s about giving these children a chance to plan, do, and then review — so a lot of it’s self-guided. 

"I think for the ages of five to seven, that’s such a unique opportunity for them to kind of take control of their own learning — to express interest in something that they want to learn about. Then we can gather things together and they can learn those things."

In addition to its Beaver Scouts program, Scouts Canada offers programs for older children, too. Kids aged eight to 10 can participate in Cub Scouts, while those aged 11 to 14 can join the Scouts program. There are also programs for even older kids.

Haas and Atwell don't have the time to run programs for multiple age groups, but the hope is to introduce a Cubs program and perhaps even a Scouts program if the first crop of Beavers wants continue on, and adults step up to volunteer. 

"Here in Hay River, we’re kind of just starting up the Beaver program — they’re kind of like the seedling group," Haas said. "Originally, it was me taking it on on my own, so there’s no way I could start the different age groups on my own, so I’m starting with Beavers because that’s the age that my son is. Then hopefully, these Beavers — by the time the town has seen it’s something valuable — we’ll maybe start a Cubs [program] and so on.”

Haas is optimistic it will be a positive experience for all the kids involved.

"We have so many athletics in the town, which is wonderful, but this is another option for kids that maybe aren’t interested [in that]," she said. "It just gives more variety to the town. 

"My hope for the kids is that they can have fun doing things out on the land, learn about the land, and build some skills."