Girl Scout Leaders Oppose Selling Camp

Attempts to sell valuable wilderness and camping property owned by the Girl Scout Council based in Seattle has landed the agency in bitter controversies.

The Totem Girl Scout Council angered hundreds of volunteer Scout leaders, who packed evening meetings in Bellevue and Seattle this week, by proposing to sell their Robbinswold camp on Hood Canal.

Robbinswold is one of two Hood Canal camps owned by the Girl Scouts. A property study by a council task force suggested selling either Robbinswold or Camp Lyle McLeod, with the proceeds to be used for a new office building in Seattle and more after-school and weekend programs.

But volunteer leaders said both camps are used year-round. Selling either, said Kascha Newberry, one of the leaders, would rob girls of the ability to go camping. That, she said, is the reason the Girl Scouts exist in the first place.

Although the task force had been meeting for nearly three years, its recommendations were made public only last week. The result has been a firestorm of angry Scout leaders, including messages on the Internet.

"Camping is the essence of Girl Scouts," said Elizabeth Fee, another volunteer leader.

Robbinswold contains 430 acres on the canal, including waterfront property, uplands with an undeveloped lake, and cabins. Its proposed closure is included with other recommendations, such as adding facilities in Skagit or Whatcom counties and beefing up the Totem Council's program at a camp near Carnation.

The staff recommendation goes to the board of directors in early April, with a decision scheduled at the end of the month. More public hearings on the proposal are scheduled this weekend.

Tina Johnson, communications director for the Totem Council, said the recommendation is part of a process to change Girl Scouting to reflect the changes in its membership.

"There are some girls who don't even go camping," she said. "They don't like camping. We want to offer a range of programs."

Meanwhile, the Chief Seattle Boy Scout Council is in trouble over plans to sell 15-acre Camp Kuppler near Port Angeles.

Norm Stone, the executive director, said that while the camp is used by Port Angeles Scouts, few people actually know about it.

Instead, he said, the council wants to concentrate on its three developed camps. While the council may be willing to sell Kuppler, he said, it just acquired 185 acres of wilderness adjacent to Camp Parsons on Hood Canal.

--------------------------------------------------. Hearings set.

Here is the schedule of public hearings for the proposed sale of the Robbinswold Girl Scout Camp:

Today: Cedar Cross Methodist Church, 1210 132nd Ave. S.E., Everett, 3 to 5 p.m.

Tomorrow: Port Angeles Senior Center, 328 Seventh, Port Angeles, 1 to 3 p.m.

Bayview Inn, 5640 Kitsap Way, Bremerton, 6 to 8 p.m.

Tuesday: First Baptist Church, 11420 S.E. 248th St., Kent, 7 to 9 p.m.