With a trip to Finland scheduled for July, local scouting groups are busily raising money to help offset the cost.
Kerry Radey, group commissioner for the 1st Copper Cliff Scouts, said about 21 scouts, representing Copper Cliff, the 23rd Sudbury Scout Group and 15th Scouting Sudbury, as well as 10 chaperones from the Greater Sudbury area, are destined for Finland to participate in the eighth annual FinnJamboree 2022.
The trip itself is dependent on where the world is with the COVID-19 pandemic in July, Radey said, but the scouts from Sudbury have already booked their flights and transportation.
“We booked our hotel in Finland for the few days we arrive ahead of the jamboree,” said Radey. “We’re proceeding full steam ahead.”
Chaperones aren’t getting a ticket to vacation, either, she said. Each chaperone will have a job, which can range from helping scouts to helping with security.
As such, until March 31, scouting groups in Greater Sudbury will be selling seeds. This fundraising event makes growing your own vegetables, herbs and flowers affordable and fun for the whole family, said Radey.
Scout Seeds are available online here. They will be delivered right to your mailbox. Seeds are being sold across the country. Remember to select 1st Copper Cliff, 23rd Sudbury or 15th Sudbury as a portion of each sale goes to these local troops.
The total cost for the trip is about $100,000, said Radey. The fundraising is expected to cover about a third of the cost, while the rest will be covered by parents. To date, they have about $13,000 saved up for the trip.
Radey said the group will also accept other donations. Direct donations can be made through etransfer. Anyone wishing to do so can email
The experience of attending these jamborees make for lifelong memories, said Radey.
“I've literally met people from Finland, Puerto Rico, New Zealand and beyond,” she said.
At a previous scouting jamboree in Nova Scotia, scouts from the Sudbury area made it a challenge to meet every international person at the camp, she said.
“They wanted to meet every international group or individual scout who was there from another country,” said Radey. “They tracked them down by taking pictures of the flags at opening ceremonies, and they did it.”
When they aren’t busy making new friends and forming bonds, scouts will be participating in numerous activities that will test their outdoor skills but will also just add to the fun of being there, she said.
