h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

When I first came to Germany in 1973, I had several years of Guiding in England behind me and asked at HQ in London how I could continue while in Germany. I was informed that "uniformed youth movements are not widely accepted due to the Hitler Youth Movement during the third Reich", but fortunately I had thought to ask about the Occupying troops. I was due to move to an American occupied part of Germany, and soon joined up with a Junior Troop in Mannheim. We had some wonderful times together, like swapping Leberwurst and Peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches as our contribution to cultural exchange!

Unfortunately, I no longer have contact with any of the people I met back then, but still many memories, photos, diaries, badges and some useful books I bought at a Girl Scouters' seminar.

TOFS stood for "Troops on Foreign Soil". Somewhere I still have a backpack with all those badges sewn on...

The American Girl Scouts were really great people and it is movements like this that help to show the children - and the mothers - of the servicemen posted abroad what is exactly going on in this strange country they have moved to, while instilling the values of Guiding/Scouting and developing all those useful skills that you never learn at school, and can't always learn at home.