Alumnae Story
Discovering 'A' Frames

By Melissa Madsen, Stamford Troop 313

I was just 9 years old, I had a bevy of badges and hadn't ever been camping overnight. Here was my chance. We were going to Camp Francis and sleep in "A" frames. I had no idea what an "A" frame was and it didn't much matter. I was getting a chance to go camping with a group of my friends.

The only real fear I had was what I was going to eat while we were there. I was a terribly picky eater and wasn't really adventurous when it came to food. Our troop boarded a bus and rode an hour and a half to Camp Francis. I soon came to find out what exactly an "A" frame was and it was cool! I had always really enjoyed the outdoors, but never had an opportunity such as this to spend the night.

We arrived mid-day and had plenty of work to do. We had to set up wash stations, prepare the latrines, sweep the "A" frames and get our caper charts done on who was cooking, serving and cleaning up for dinner and breakfast.

The other chore was to gather kindling for the campfire! WOW, a real campfire, I couldn’t wait! We set up our campfire by the lake. What a beautiful setting. I still remember the moons' reflection on the lake in front of me and the warm glow of my friends faces by the fire. I learned so many new campfire Girl Scout songs that night. I remember seeing my first shooting star that night and also finding a piece of meteorite. I also had another first that night, a S'MORE. Mmmmm (by the way, I did try hotdogs for the first time and didn't go hungry).

So many things I learned with my troop and so many fond memories. To this day, I have a great love for camping and have continued to camp every year since my teens. I even camped when I was pregnant and thanks to port-a-cribs, did so with the kids when they were babies. To this day my camping crew has grown and expanded to include many friends and their families. It came full circle when the crew included another leader from my service unit, not by design.

I knew when I had my daughter that Girl Scouting was going to remain in my life and I would some way or another become involved. Well, needless to say, I have been a leader now for going on seven years and the girls are starting their second year in STUDIO 2B! Scouting has been one of the most rewarding and meaningful experiences in my life and I will always have great memories as I make new ones with my daughter and my troop!