Since the beginning of Covid, Kris McGee has been running an online auction on the ‘Guides Canada, Buy, Sell, Trade’ Facebook page in support of the 5 Guiding World Centers. All funds are gifted directly to the 5 world centers which have been closed with no revenue for nearly two. Kris has also been involved in organizing online events with the World Centers and she kindly agreed to join me for an interview about her projects.
A big thank you to Kris for this interview and all she does for Guiding around the world.
1. Can you tell me a little about your Guiding story?
I joined Brownies early; my mom managed to convince Brownie Owl to take me almost 2 years early...I was a firecracker at that age and I guess my mom needed a Tuesday night break! The result is nearly a half century of membership. My best friends were made in Rangers and my closest circle of friends are all Guiding sisters. I have been a Guider with every branch and I’ve served at every level of Guiding from District to National. I bleed blue blood as do all of my family members. My daughters are 5th generation members, with our Guiding heritage going back nearly a century to 1925 and Great Great Aunt Leila who opened the 1st Chesterville Guides. My son grew up as “Brownie Boy” and my husband was “Mr. Brown Owl”. They have both sold more cookies than they have eaten and they’ve lugged more camping gear and toadstools than a Himilayan Sherpa.
2. What made you start the auction and what makes you keep going?
I am very fortunate to have visited all five World Centres and to have visited most of the several (many) times over. The staff and volunteers are my sisters and friends. The connections that I have made at the World Centres are inexplicable. I have a bed, couch or floor to sleep on in any WAGGGS country due to my friendships. I’ve been invited to weddings across the globe and I cannot count the number of Guiding Daughters and Sisters that I have spread out across the continents.
The World Centres are the “Disneyland” of Guiding...it is there that dreams come true and that truth is found in our dreams. I want every member to experience the centres. I was the last guest to leave the last open centre when the pandemic hit. I do not want to be the last guest ever and I certainly don’t want to say, “Once we had 5 World Centres, now we have only 3.”. I will do everything in my power to ensure that all 5 Centres can open their doors to our members in the near future.
The time that I give to the auction does not compare to the efforts and energies of the women and girls around the globe who have worked diligently to keep their Guiding lights burning throughout the pandemic.
3. You have such amazing items for auction! What’s your secret to finding so much Guiding treasure?
There is no secret….I foolishly (?) give my address out to just about anyone. It is not uncommon for me to come home from work and discover boxes, bins and bags on my porch. I’m honoured to receive these gifts, mementos and memories from Guiding families. To be trusted with the gifts from many of our past members is very special and I’m grateful to their families for entrusting them to me. Many families are torn when a loved one has passed. While they may not hold an old wool blanket dear to their heart, they know that each badge and crest was sewn with love. They struggle to figure out how to honour the memory of their loved one, the 5 World Centres Project has proven to be the solution. The items find a new loving home, the funds support our World Centres, the donors are elated and the new owners are thrilled to acquire a sought after treasure.
It is pretty exciting to arrive home to those boxes. My daughters and I get pretty excited opening them. We have absolutely no idea what’s in them and it is SO much fun to unwrap treasures. So far the most unique item dropped off on my porch is likely a Guiding advertisement that was once in a Toronto subway car. It is a plastic “sign” that would have been lit from behind and would have been on the wall of the subway car above the heads of the passengers.
4. Have there been any items that really surprised you with the community’s reaction?
The items that have evoked the strongest response (in other words the highest or multitude of last second bids) tend to be mementos of the past: Canada Cords, Guide dolls and jewelry. The most popular items (greatest number of bidders) tends to be adult clothing, especially the Alfred Sung striped uniform blouses! The toughest item to clear out seems to be camp hats….it’s either because there are 80 million of them in my storage or because Guiders continue to have an aversion to wearing their hat at camp. My solution has been to sell them as a container filled with goodies - in particular hat crafts. I can pack about 40 different hat crafts into a camp hat and ensure a reasonable donation will make its way to the World Centres.
My two favourite items have been very unique finds...one is a crest that was worn by the Chief Commissioner of Canada between 1950-1968, it appears that only 7 were made. The other is an Honourary Life Membership Pin from circa 1975, the shape of the trefoil is really unique. Any truly unique or special items I have/will offer to our Archives Teams before auctioning to our members. I am hoping that our sharing of these treasures can also mean preserving some of our heritage.
5. What’s been your favorite memory around the auction so far? What would you like people to remember about the auction?
When I started this “wee project” I was auctioning off surplus items out of my own Guiding collections. I had hoped to send a couple hundred dollars to each centre. My favourite recollection will undoubtedly be the fact that my Canadian sisters came together to support my dream...a dream that had its beginnings at a World Centre. Guiders from every single province and territory have donated items or funds through their “purchases”.
Not only have we helped to ensure that our centres will open once again, but we’ve impacted the local lives in each of the World Centre communities. Our funds have literally kept the lights on, the taxes paid, the local staff housed and fed and...the doors open. My fondest memories will in fact be the memories of this auction and the women who came together as sisters.
6. Is there anything else you would want people to know about the auction?
The 5 World Centres Project is a passion project. Every single penny, pound, peso, franc and rupee goes directly to the World Centres. None of the funds are used for any other purpose. I’m not sure how long the auction is sustainable but as long as my family is willing to live in my “amazon warehouse” of blue items we will keep going.
In addition to the 5 World Centres Project auction, I have been coordinating cooking lessons, yoga, art and cultural celebrations “live” from each centre. Again, absolutely every dollar goes back to the centres and if people are looking for more ways to get involved they can participate in dozens of on-line sessions through the Eventbrite platform. All of the sessions can be located by searching for WAGGGS.
The WAGGGS World Centers:
Pax Lodge (England) : https://www.wagggs.org/en/our-world/world-centres/pax-lodge/
Our Cabana (Mexico) : https://www.wagggs.org/en/our-world/world-centres/our-cabana/
Kusafiri (Traveling around Africa) : https://www.wagggs.org/en/our-world/world-centres/kusafiri/
Our Chalet (Switzerland): (https://www.wagggs.org/en/our-world/world-centres/our-chalet/
Sangam (India):https://www.wagggs.org/en/our-world/world-centres/sangam/