Grown-up Girl Scout Camp!

Girl Scouts has always held a special place in my heart. I was a Girl Scout from kindergarten through my senior year of high school. My older sister currently helps run a troop which my niece belongs to and I couldn’t be more proud. For all these reasons and more, I listened up when my sister told me to enter one of the GSCTX Twitter contests. I entered the contest and with random luck, I won two tickets toS’more Soiree! I, of course, planned to take my sister and together we planned our weekend as we impatiently waited for the days to go by.

I hadn’t been to the location of the event, Camp Texlake, since my last year of high school. Driving there, I remembered the countless visits with my troop, the old Starcke Lodge, my favorite view and all of the fun I experienced when I went there.

Once my sister and I checked in, we went out to do some walking. It was so cool to be there with my sister! We were never in Girl Scouts at the same time, but I love that she and my niece can experience the same fun and great things about Girl Scouts that I did growing up. We walked by the ‘singing trees’ and I visited the old Starcke Lodge. Lots of great memories there!

As the day’s activities began, I ran into my old troop leader Sue. She was one of the two women who led my troop for all those years. We have many memories together and seeing her there really made my weekend. Aside from all the fun I had in Girl Scouts, I learned a lot and I credit my time there in helping me become the woman I am today. I feel this is an organization all girls should experience.

S’more Soiree was everything I could have imagined and more! My sister and I did horseback riding together and afterwards, I had a spa treatment. At the end of the day, I went on a hayride. I particularly like being able to go by places around the camp I’d been to as a kid, being able to see some new things and also see how Camp Texlake has changed over the years. If you ever go, make sure camp staff, Princess, does your tour! She truly embodies the great spirit of Girl Scouts and has great stories!

As the day came to an end, my sister and I headed back to the lodge for dinner and a concert with Sarah Hickman. The food was great, the S’more martinis were better, and Sarah Hickman was so much fun! It was so cool to see women of all ages gather to enjoy the evening and come together in the spirit of Girl Scouts. I would definitely go back to S’more Soiree. I will always consider Girl Scouts as some of the best times of my life. 


-Kristy Hilbig


For more photos of S'more Soiree, check out our Flickr account!