Piet Kroonenberg

Background:

Piet has been a Scout since he took his Cub Scout Promise on his eighth birthday.  During World War II he was active in Scouting in the Netherlands at a time when it was illegal and everything had to be “underground”.  After the war, he worked with displaced persons, some of whom were Scouts eager to continue Scouting wherever they went.  Over the years he volunteered much of his time as a member of Scouting Nederland, often working in functions with an international dimension.

His interest in Exile Scout Movements and the Scouting left behind in their countries of origin, has led to substantial research and eventually the writing of The Forgotten Movements which was published in 1989.  He continued his research, and at the request of Jacques Morellion, Secretary General of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, expanded the book into The Undaunted, Volume 1 (c.1998) and Volume 2 (c.2003).  Volume 1 includes Russia, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Ukraine, and Armenia.  Volume 2 includes Albania, Estonia, Lithuania, and Vietnam.  These books can be purchased in our online store.

Piet is the Historical Consultant to the European Scout Committee.  He has received many awards, including in 1996 the Bronze Wolf.  This award is given by the World Scout Committee for outstanding service to International Scouting.

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Stories:

A True Story of a Scout in Times of War

This story is a gripping and significant account of one Scout’s experiences in Nazi-occupied Holland. It is the story of a Boy Scout, who, because of the terrible events of the Second World War, became a Courier for the Resistance, or Dutch Underground, an armed Resistance fighter, a translator, and a navigator to both the British and Canadian Armies of Liberation and, through it all and in his later years, a life-long Scout.  To protect his identity, the author used the codeword “J.” in his story.  This is a true story.  These events happened.

• PART I
• PART II
• PART III

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• Royal Scouts – Netherlands
• Royal Scouts – Belgium
• Royal Scouts – Sweden
• Royal Scouts – Denmark
• Jan Van Hoof – Dutch Rover Scout and Partisan & recipient of the US Medal of Freedom with Bronze Palm
• Scouting in South Schesvig
• Guide International Service & Scout International Relief Service
• The Rockwall Mystery District Badge (added 11/5/09)
• To The Netherlands, Scouting Came By Bike (added 11/10/09)
• The Scarf With The Lion (added 11/10/09) – One of these special scarves is part of the Museum’s collection.

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