Girl Scouts celebrate 100th anniversary of Camp Redwing
RENFREW — Girl Scouts of all generations spent the weekend at Camp Redwing to enjoy fun and friendship, and preserve the Scouts’ mission that has empowered girls who have been coming to the bucolic camp for the last 100 years.
Nestled in a 123-acre wooded peninsula along Connoquenessing Creek, Camp Redwing is one of several camps owned by the Girl Scouts of Western Pennsylvania, which hosted a celebration of the camp’s 100th anniversary from Friday through Sunday.
Jessica Kiefer of Latrobe, Westmoreland County, attended many weekends at the camp as a young Scout and returned to volunteer for the 100th anniversary. She went by the camp name “derf” for the weekend.
Kiefer said the first Camp Redwing opened in 1921 at a site about 2 miles away near Harmony.
The camp was moved to its present location the following year after the property owners, the Babcock family, gave it to the Girl Scouts Council of Allegheny County in 1920.
Edward Babcock was the mayor of Pittsburgh and his wife, Mary Babcock, was one of the early supporters and first commissioner of the Girl Scout council. When Mary died in 1969, one of the original units named Merry Lodge was renamed Mary Lodge in her honor.
Ownership of the property was officially transferred to the Scouts in 1923, Kiefer said.
The land was first settled by brothers James and William Critchlow, who farmed the property after receiving it as payment for service in the Revolutionary War, she said.
In the early days of Camp Redwing, Scouts would get there by taking a train from Pittsburgh to a nearby station.
One of the first things they had to do upon arrival was to stuff hay into sacks that they used to sleep on in tents, Kiefer said.
Scouts of that time had to wear uniforms during activities that included riding horses and learning archery.
In the 1960s, several Scout councils in the region were consolidated to form the Girl Scouts of Western Pennsylvania, which has councils and troops in 27 counties, said Karen Burchill, director of marketing and communication.
“Scouting has changed a lot, but the principles are the same,” Burchill said.
She said the Girl Scouts are still about fun and friendship, and its mission — “to build girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place” continues to guide the organization.
The outdoor experiences of camp help build confidence and leadership in young girls, who often make lifelong friendships at camp, Burchill said.
“It’s fun,” said Hadley “Sparkle” Painter, 10, of Butler, who has camped at Redwing several times as a member of Troop 16417, which is part of the Greater Butler Service Unit.
Hadley, who was among about 150 Scouts in attendance, said she enjoyed the singalongs, arts and crafts projects, and “nature.”
She took a turn leading a group of Scouts in a singalong, which featured camp song favorites such as the “Turkey Song,” “Washington Waddle” and the “Buffalo Song.”
“She’s been enjoying it and meeting new friends,” said her mother, Caitlin Painter, a troop leader and service unit manager.
A number of women who camped at Redwing as young Scouts returned for the anniversary to help lead the next generation.
Mary Ann “Pebble” Schneider of Pittsburgh attended Camp Redwing as a Scout from 2001 to 2008, worked there and at other camps as a counselor from 2010 to 2015, and is a lifetime member of the Girl Scouts. She said she got married at Camp Redwing two weeks ago to Peter Shipp, whom she met at camp.
She said she came back for the camp experience.
“We slept in a thunderstorm last night,” Schneider said Saturday.
She returned for the anniversary with Tavie Flowers of Morgantown, W.Va., who attended camp as a Scout from 2006 to 2010 and worked there in 2011 and 2012. She is also a lifelong member of the Scouts and presided over the Schneider-Shipp wedding.
“It’s the best camp ever,” Flowers said.
She said she took part in a hike to an old primitive camp on the property called the outpost where camp horses used to be kept.
Accompanying her on the hike was Caitlin “Apple” Moury, a Pittsburgh native who lives in Cleveland. She attended camp in the 1990s and worked there from 2004 to 2010. She said the only amenity at the camp was a water pump. The camp kept 28 horses over the summers so scouts could learn to ride and earn riding badges.
