Girl Scouts: 100 years of friendship

Once a Girl Scout, always a Girl Scout.As local Scouts gear up for next month's Great Girl Gathering at the Mall of America in honor of the group's 100th anniversary, this is the message the organization wants to share with all past Girl Scouts and troop leaders.

For longtime friends Donna Pietsch of Lino Lakes and Peggy Bakko of Roseville, that message has been their unofficial motto since meeting in a second-grade Brownie troop at St. Rose of Lima School in Roseville more than 40 years ago.

"I still remember the classroom where we used to meet," said Bakko. "And one of the craft projects I always remember was a plaster-of-Paris recipe card holder that we all made for our moms."

The women laughed as they recalled bringing their dues to each meeting -- a dime tucked into a small felt pouch they had sewn themselves as another craft project. Other fond memories include making their first "sit-upons" (Pietsch still has hers) and going on overnight and summer day-camp excursions to Camp Lakamaga on Big Marine Lake near Scandia, Minn.

Both enjoyed their camp experiences so much that when they moved into junior high, they served as "Caddies" -- older girls who would assist camp leaders with songs, games and other activities.

"We were both quite shy when we were younger. Being involved in leadership roles really gave us more confidence," said Bakko. "We were great partners and meshed well together, which is why troop leaders would often call on us to be Caddies at camp."

They stayed active in Girl Scouts through high school, but neither was ready to leave Scouting behind. After graduating from the University of Minnesota, Pietsch stepped in to help her sister lead a troop at St. Rose for several years. Those girls are now in college and Pietsch, who has no children, is currently leading her third Girl Scout troop, made up of third-, fourth- and fifth-graders in Lino Lakes.

Bakko became a troop leader when her daughters -- Bridget, Sarah and Amy -- were ready to become Brownies. Now, Bridget is in college, Sarah is in high school and still part of a troop, as is Amy, an eighth-grader. Bakko also helps recruit and train new troop leaders, encouraging parents to participate as much as they can.

"In our day, the Girl Scout meetings were always after school, but now the trend has definitely shifted to meetings on evenings and weekends," she said. "Parents are more likely to have availability to help out during those times."

A network for the future

There are about 50,000 former Girl Scouts in the southern half of Minnesota and western edge of Wisconsin, says Elissa Chaffee, alumnae relations coordinator for the Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin River Valleys, which was formed last year to facilitate organizing so many with ties to the group.

"Our goal is to get and keep people who have benefited from the Girl Scouts program connected," said Chaffee. "We want to move people beyond thinking that Girl Scouts is just something they did as a girl and encourage them to be engaged today as little or as much as they want to be. There are all kinds of volunteer opportunities available. We also see the alumnae association as a valuable networking tool."

"There are some things that have changed, but the intrinsic part of Girl Scouts is still the same," said Chaffee. "It's a safe space for girls to make new friends and try new things."

For Pietsch and Bakko, working with today's Girl Scouts also allows them to nurture the friendship they started many years ago.

"Occasionally, Peggy and I bring our troops together for events and, after we've gotten them started on a project, we can spend time together visiting and reminiscing," said Pietsch. "It's our personal '2 for 1' Girl Scouts experience."

Julie Pfitzinger is a West St. Paul freelance writer.