2017 – Juniors 100
The Boys’ Brigade celebrated 100 years of working with eight to eleven-year-olds in 2017. As part of the celebrations, parties were held right across the country during September – the actual month the actual month The BB started working with the age group in 1917. Members of the Juniors marked the milestone throughout 2017, including taking part in the Juniors 100 Challenge where young people were encouraged to complete 100 challenges including activities like ‘Taking part in a world record attempt’, ‘Learning basic first aid skills’, ‘Raising £100 for a local charity’ and ‘Trying-out a new sport’. Members were also getting active, being creative, learning new skills, exploring and being adventurous whilst helping others in their local communities.
The celebrations involved looking back at the heritage of Juniors, sharing stories from this year of celebration and looking to the future and the next 100 years. The adventure for this age group started back in September 1917 and continues today with this week more than 16,000 eight to 11-year olds in the BB taking part in a fun and active programme across more than 1,300 groups across the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland.
Juniors 100 Challenge
The Juniors 100 Challenge consisted of 100 Challenges which were designed to be completed individually or involve the whole section working together – whichever the case we hope that as many young people as possible will have a go at each and every challenge during the course of the year. The challenges encourage your section to get out and about, get learning, get creative, get active and get into the Bible whilst having lots of fun doing so, whilst forming a part of your weekly programme for 2017.
The BIG 100 Birthday Party
Every Company was encouraged to hold a special birthday party in September 2017, the month that The Boys Reserves first started back in 1917.
Juniors International Team Games
This annual international competition has become a popular event for many Junior Sections around the world, and for 2017 this had a centenary theme.
Sharing the Journey
This was the first major anniversary in the social media era, and the Juniors 100 celebrations were seen as a good way to raise the profile of The Boys’ Brigade and specifically the Junior Section (Juniors) age group through increased visibility and media awareness. Selfie frames were provided in the mailing of the BB Gazette, and Companies were encouraged to post on social media through Twitter, Facebook and Instagram – making use of the #juniors100 hashtag.
A special badge was designed to mark the occasion of the centenary of the Junior Section and was available from BB Supplies for the 2017 session. The badge was authorised to be worn by Junior Section members on the right armband to the right of the service badge.
