0Bentley will continue to collect artifacts for the museum ' Continued from previous page. There's also a chapel in the museum. On one wall there are pictures and lists of names that bring the history of Scouting to life in a very haunting way. One frame tells the story of two young boys who died in a drowning accident in 1954--the 14-year- old, who himself was not a strong swim- mer, jumped in to save his seven-year-old brother but to no avail. When their parents later moved to Belleville they established a trust fund in 1989 to support Scouting, which their sons had been involved with. Interest from the $20,000-trust fund helps pay for uniforms and registration fees for children who can't afford these. Bentley is quick to point out that without a museum devoted to showcasing Scouting and Guiding artifacts, there wouldn't be a place to remind others about the bravery of Scouts; several local Scouts have saved numerous people from drowning while another helped an automobile crash vic- tim. The same could be said of the rest of the museum's collection. "If we hadn't started to preserve this stuff, it would've gone into private collections," Bentley said. "And these boys would never really be recognized for what they did." One room at the museum is entirely dedicated to the memory of Lord Robert Baden-Powell, who founded the world Scout movement. Meanwhile, the hall- way walls are hidden behind frames filled with more than 5,000 Scouting and Guiding badges--all courtesy of the devoted efforts of Paul Deryaw, the new curator. "And was his wife ever thankful to get them out of their basement," Bentley said with a chuckle. There's also a Scout leader meeting room while other rooms are used to display collections of dolls, hats, American Scouting mugs, stamps, district trophies and jamboree memorabilia. "It tires me out thinking about it sometimes," Bentley said of the extensive collection with a smile. And while Bentley admits he'll miss managing the museum "a little bit," he accepts moving on with grace and a little bit of humour. "You've got to realize that finding someone wanting to do this job is difficult," he said and with a relieved smiled adding that his replacement also faces the daunting job of cataloguing the 22,000-piece collection on computer. And besides, Bentley's retirement plans won't extend to his other community proj- ects. He also plans to continue collecting more Scouting and Guiding treasures for the museum. "Anybody who wants to sit at home on the couch, I feel very sorry for them because they're not going to have a great time," Bentley said with a shrug of his shoulders. The Belleville Scout Guide Museum is open to visitors and researchers. Traveling displays can also' be arranged. To ar- range for a viewing, please call curator Paul Deryaw at (613) 966-2740 or David Bentley at (613)968-6605. 1 i