For anyone who once wore a Brownie uniform, collected badges or spent a weekday evening in a hall playing games, this story will feel wonderfully familiar. In Istead Rise, that tradition is still alive and now it has found its way onto a Bear Cub called Lily.

Between them, Karen and Liz, Leaders of 1st Istead Rise Rainbows, 2nd Istead Rise Brownies have given over 90 years to Girlguiding. They have seen generations of girls arrive shy, noisy or unsure of themselves, then leave more confident, with new skills and lasting friendships.

Today they run 1st Istead Rise Rainbows and 2nd Istead Rise Brownies from St Barnabas Church Hall welcoming girls aged four to ten from Istead Rise and the surrounding areas.

“The girls keep us young,” Karen says, laughing. “They come in full of energy. Give them a few cones, some balls and bits to play with, and suddenly they’ve invented their own game. They organise themselves, work together and just get on with it.”

That same energy, imagination and teamwork can now be seen in Lily, the Bear Cub they created for ellenor’s Dartford We’re Going on a Bear Hunt art trail.

The first public art trail created by ellenor and Dartford Borough Council, the borough-wide event will transform Dartford into an open-air trail of bears inspired by the animated adaptation of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury.

Lily is everything a bear designed by children should be. Colourful, happy and full of imagination. Covered in flowers, rainbows, Brownie colours and bold patterns, she was painted by the girls themselves.

“It had to be their bear,” Liz says. “We only painted the face so she looked like a bear. Everything else is theirs. They chose the colours, painted her and named her Lily. We’ve no idea why Lily, but that was their choice.”

For Liz, the project was also deeply personal. Her husband and mother were both cared for by ellenor.

“When my husband became ill, ellenor stepped in and supported us,” she says. “He loved coming here. My mum was cared for here too, so ellenor has always been very close to my heart.”

The project was a chance to help the girls understand why local hospice care matters, and how communities can come together to support families facing difficult times.

“We wanted them to learn about kindness and helping other people,” Liz says. “It was a way of showing them that ellenor is here for local families when they need care and support, and that even small acts of kindness can make a big difference.”

The Rainbows worked towards their helper badge while the Brownies linked the project to their charity badge. They also raised funds through a sponsored silence and other activities helping secure their place on the trail.

While much has changed over the years, Karen and Liz believe some things matter just as much as ever: children needing community, kindness and somewhere to be themselves.

In a world where so much happens online, they say there is still real value in girls meeting face to face, working together, laughing together and learning to care about other people.

Asked what Agnes Baden-Powell and the early pioneers of guiding might make of a Bear Cub raising money for a local hospice, Karen smiles.

“She’d be over the moon,” she says. “It’s about bringing out the good in every child, seeing their different talents, and helping them discover what they can do.”

What they would really love now is a few more people to help run the Rainbows and Brownies.

“We can only take as many girls as we have helpers,” Karen says. “There are always more girls who’d like to join the Rainbows and Brownies. With a few more volunteers, more girls could be part of it.”

As for Lily, she stands for something bigger than herself: that kindness can start young, communities are built week by week, and the people who hold them together are rarely the ones asking for applause. Lily will be part of ellenor’s Dartford We’re Going on a Bear Hunt art trail when it opens in summer 2026