Telstar Scout Group Luxembourg held its first meeting on 8 November 1974, the Cub Scout Pack early in 1975, the Venture Scout Unit in 1980 and the Beaver Scout Colony in 1986. Why, you may ask, was Telstar set up? Could the boys not have simply joined the existing local Scout Groups?

 

Towards the end of 1973, following the entry of Ireland and the United Kingdom into the then EEC, there followed a large influx of English-speaking boys into Luxembourg . Many of these wanted Scouting, either because they had already been Scouts or Cubs, or because their parents wanted them to join. There was an existing American Cub Pack, but following discussions with them it was revealed (understandably) that they were unwilling to take on the new arrivals and thereby possibly deprive American children of a place.

 

Some parents wanted the boys to join FNEL (one of the two Luxembourg Scout Federations and of which Telstar is now a member) but in most cases language proved to be an insurmountable barrier. This may have been an exaggeration (and later on it was recognised that it was a mistake not to affiliate from the outset) but it seemed the right thing to do at the time. It was considered that Telstar could become a normal member of FNEL using their training scheme, however FNEL’s feeling at the time was that it would be too difficult to integrate. It was therefore decided to start an English-speaking Scout Group.