Grassroots Group Wants To Save Girl Scout Camps From Being Sold

WAUKESHA COUNTY,WI— A grassroots organization is working to raise awareness about the planned sale of two local Girl Scout Camps.

Save Our Camps GSWISE, is a group of more than 100 day camp directors, volunteers, troop leaders, Girl Scouts, and friends of Girl Scouts are speaking out on the sale of Camp Winding River, in Neosho and Camp Pottawatomie Hills, in East Troy. They created an online petition in support of saving the camps.

Kathryn Sowinski of Save Our Camps, said Camp Winding River is used by all Girl Scouts in southeastern Wisconsin for troop overnights and events and hosts volunteer-led day camps for communities in Washington county and northern Waukesha county.

Girl Scouts in southern Waukesha county, Milwaukee and Brookfield attend volunteer-led day camps at the other camp being sold. Camp Pottawatomie Hill was established in 1930 and has served generations of Girl Scouts for troop overnights, resident camp, and day camp, according to Sowinski.

Sowinski told Patch she grew up in New Berlin and attended Camp Winding River for ten years as a camper, then as a program assistant.

"The leadership experiences I gained inspired me to become a teacher. After graduating from high school, I returned every summer as a volunteer," she said.

Sowinski added that last year her four-year-old twin daughters attended Camp Winding River for the first time.

It takes time

Beth Hahn of Muskego and a member of SOC is a volunteer day camp director for the Sun Lakes Girl Scouts. SLGS organizes a camp for 400 girls every summer.

Save Our Camps GSWISE, is concerned that the sudden announcement of these sales with less than seven months to go before summer camps begin will adversely affect volunteers' ability to plan and implement the high-quality programming our Girl Scout families have come to expect and love.

The average volunteer-led camp for 300 girls involves 10,000 volunteer hours, with many of volunteers working full-time jobs and with other commitments.

Most volunteers use their vacation time from work for the week of summer camp. Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast (GSWISE) did not announce that these camps were being considered for divestment - many other Girl Scout councils communicate long-range property plans on their website, according to Sowinski.

"We are very concerned for our children, who have lost so much this year. Being volunteer-run camps, we are concerned about the property that GSWISE wishes to move us to will not be ready for our programming," Sowinski said.

GSWISE moved the camp she volunteered at to a different property in 2000. An important part of programming is teaching girls to build and cook over campfires. The 2000 property did not have enough fire pits so two other volunteers and Sowinski had to spend a Sunday evening digging and preparing fire pits.

Hahn echoed her statement and said it takes a lot of time and effort to plan camps for the girls. Hahn told Patch it takes about a year to complete planning and volunteers start right after summer camp ends.

"There is a lot of uncertainty right now," Hahn said.

Hahn added she has to have stuff on paper in six months to hand out and also recruit volunteers to help with activities.

"The Girl Scout Board acted hastily without input from members, directors," Hahn said.

The SOC acknowledged a survey was sent out by the GSWISE. Hahn said the survey questions seem to ask what would be a dream camp experience.

"The survey didn't really ask questions that indicated we would be going in this type of direction. The lack of transparency is what is at the crux here," she told Patch.

Hahn said she understands the financial need to sell the pieces of land. However, she and other members of SOC feel the board should have spoken with them before their decision.

"Perhaps we could have come up with different options," she told Patch.

GSWISE Responds

Christy Brown, CEO of Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast (GSWISE) responded to Patch regarding the sale of the camps.

"As Girl Scouts, we recognize the importance and responsibility of being good stewards of the mission we serve. While we have been fortunate to have many locations available for girls to experience the outdoors, the reality is that our camps have not been operating at capacity for years, and membership projections show that this trend will continue," Brown told Patch.

There are four other camp properties that will continue to host camps and other events: Camp Silver Brook (West Bend); Camp Alice Chester (East Troy); Chinook Program Center (Waukesha); and Trefoil Program Center (Kenosha).

Any girl that wants to attend camp, will have the opportunity to do so.

"Based upon our current membership, we can accommodate the anticipated number of campers at the four remaining camp locations. As we continue to build membership, we will build capacity to meet needs at our camps," Brown said.

To better focus and invest in opportunities for girls, GSWISE will divest two camp properties, Camp Winding River and Camp Pottawatomie Hills, while enhancing the camp experiences at all remaining properties.

The recommendation of divesture came as a result of the consultants’ evaluation of the properties.

Reducing the GSWISE property portfolio will help concentrate efforts on what’s best for the girls, including updated programming tailored to today’s girls and future generations’ needs.

The proceeds from the sales will be reinvested into camp programs and the remaining properties, as well as the overall GSWISE mission to provide Girl Scout Leadership Experiences for every girl, according to Brown.

"Additionally, we will be able to reinvest and better use resources towards our goal of reaching more girls and achieving a higher impact. While this decision is a difficult one, it is an important example of how we as Girl Scouts can use our resources wisely."

GSWISE partnered with two of the leading camp program consultants in the nation to review both camp programming and properties. As part of their efforts, they reached out to Girl Scout members, volunteers, leaders, and alumnae for important insights. A survey was created in 2018 to understand girls' camp experiences and why families decide to send their child to camp or not, according to Brown.

Over 3,400 responses were received from GSWISE members. The survey showed several opportunities for camp operations to better meet and exceed the growing expectations of girls and families, Brown said

Then during the past year, Girl Scout members, volunteers, leaders, and alumnae were asked about their camp experience through virtual community sessions and an online survey.

Participants identified what is most important to include in the camping experience and what will excite them about camping in the future.

Many of the girls who responded were motivated by new experiences and wanted to see an increase of adventure and challenging activities – like climbing, ninja challenge, and high ropes courses – as well as traditional camp activities, Brown said.

Based on feedback received and their assessments, the consultants gave objective evaluations of current camp program offerings, reviewed camp properties, and identified opportunities for GSWISE to pursue in the future.

The GSWISE Board of Directors was presented with this information and tasked with developing a plan of action to enhance camp programs and properties.

"As soon as a decision was made, GSWISE decided to tell members, volunteers, leaders, and alumnae to be as transparent as possible, even though we don’t yet have all the answers," Brown said.

GSWISE also held a community listening session, where the decision and rationale were presented, and the staff took time to answer some questions from the community.

Brown said of the decision:

"We know it is hard to say goodbye. Both Camp Winding River and Camp Pottawatomie Hills will forever be important and beloved pieces of our council’s legacy. The decision to divest two of our six camp properties was very difficult. Based upon our current membership, we can accommodate the anticipated number of campers at the four remaining camp locations.

As we continue to build membership, we will build capacity to meet needs at our camps.

We began the project “Camp Reimagined” to enhance our camp programs, and continue to offer the next generation of girls with meaningful camp experiences, "Brown said.

Due to the pandemic GSWISE has not yet determined what the 2021 camp season will look like. They do plan to camp next year. The organization is working on several possible plans with the lens of what is in the best interest of the girls. GSWISE will continue to work with volunteers to plan for the day camps. As details for Camp Reimagined and the 2021 camp season are finalized, more information will be shared with members and volunteers, according to Brown.