First time we had to use our initiative on the Welsh mountains. Stuck in a cave to ride out the rain for two hours telling ghost stories! Brilliant fun at 16 years old. Also loved community work, and I became a nurse on the back of that. Now I hold a PhD and train healthcare professionals. D of E was such an excellent grounding and exciting thing to work for because it forced me to use resourcefulness, face difficulty and discipline to achieve.
My son has and hopefully my daughter will do this too.