On October 5th and 6th, 2019, the Federal Council gathered in Lviv, Ukraine, for its annual meeting. 16 countries were represented at this General Assembly of the UIGSE-FSE organisation. It was the occasion for the Federal Bureau, elected in 2018, to present its first year of service and to launch different international projects for the scout year 2019-2020.
Despite the windy-rainy autumn weather, the meeting started with a flag ceremony outside, during which the Federal Commission recognized the new General Guide Commissioner of Switzerland. A holy mass was celebrated in Greek-Catholic rite, accompanied by a beautiful choir made of young leaders of the Ukrainian Scouts of Europe association. The beauty of the liturgy compensated largely the fact that a lot of participants are not familiar with the Eastern rite. The Federal Council members could experience again that we do not need to speak the same language in order to be united in prayer and faith in Jesus Christ.
The Federal Council was warmly welcomed by the Ukrainian FSE association that prepared everything needed in order to make a working weekend a most agreeable experience: good meals, a scout cake, guided city tour, small gifts for the participants… and big smiles in all faces!