Girl Scout Troop 11 in 1953 after ‘flying up’ from Brownies to Girl Scouts. Courtesy photo
Girl Scout Troop 11 at its 70th anniversary in 2019. Courtesy photo
‘Camp Fire Stew’ Author Linda Wood
By BONNIE J. GORDON
Los Alamos Daily Post
bjgordon@ladailypost.com
It began in 1949. The 18 little girls, ages 5 and 6, weren’t quite sure what to expect at the first meeting of Brownie Troop 11 in Fort Worth, Texas. Whatever future they envisioned for their troop, the girls could never have imaged what would come to pass. Seventy years later, the girls of Troop 11 are still together—sister scouts and lifelong friends.
“I realized we had an amazing story that needed to be told,” Los Alamos author Linda Wood said.
The result is the recently published book “Campfire Stew: Fort Worth’s Girl Scout Troop 11”.
“Campfire Stew” is about Girl Scouts and Fort Worth, but it is even more about this very long women’s friendship,” Wood said.
“These girls grew into outstanding women who are still impacting the world in which they live, even as they have aged into their mid-seventies.”
“Campfire Stew is both a favorite dish of the troop and a metaphor of the troop itself,” Wood said. “Each member is one ingredient, good by herself, but so much better when mixed together with the others.”
The women gather two or three times a year and stay in close touch.
“I hear from at least one of them every day,” Wood said. “We’re all so different, and have so many varied interests. What really keeps us together is that we just love each other.”
Troop leader Minnie Ruth, Elrod “Ellie” as the girls would come to call her, was determined that the troop would stay together through high school, Wood said, and that in itself is unusual. Part of what kept the teenage girls in the troop was, believe it or not, the uniforms. As Mariner Scouts, the girls had elegant uniforms that made the girls feel stylish and grown up, Wood said.
There was more to it than the uniform. As Mariners, the girls learned to sail and canoe, as well as swimming and lifesaving skills to add to their growing store of knowledge, from sewing to camping.
“Our troop leader and her assistant leaders had so many ideas for projects,” Wood said. “All our leaders were women of the Depression. They were capable, as well as smart and strong. They imparted their strength to us.”
The book chronicles adventures in scouting such as making hammocks that could actually be slept in and learning to treat a snake bite. It also paints a picture of the 1950s, complete with party lines (more than one family sharing a phone connection) and commercial propeller planes. Term papers were hand-written and researched at the Public Library, Wood remembers. The book spans 70 years of history, as lived by 16 (four troop members have died) spunky, determined women. One of the most interesting parts of the book is the section that chronicles each woman’s life, complete with vintage and current photos. Most of the women still live in Texas, but one is in California and Wood is in New Mexico.
“They all did great things,” Wood said. “They were teachers, nurses, business women, you name it. One of them is a Christian minister. Texas women don’t think they can fail, and neither do Girl Scouts.”
Woods knew in grade school she wanted to be a writer.
“My mother insisted that I choose a career, not just write,” Wood said. “I chose journalism.”
“Scouting was great prep for journalism,” Wood said. “It taught me how to research a subject and I ended up knowing a little about a lot of things!”
Wood has spent her entire life doing some kind of writing. She has been a feature writer for the Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram newspaper, assistant editor of the Austin-based Texas Medicine medical journal, and a technical writer-editor at Los Alamos National Laboratory. She was one of the editors of the Lab’s iconic book on the Cerro Grande Fire. She has published hundreds of articles in national, regional, and local magazines and newspapers. “Campfire Stew” is her first published book.
Wood holds a bachelor of arts in journalism degree, with distinction, from The University of Oklahoma, Norman, and a master of arts in communication degree from The University of Texas at Austin. Wood is a 50-year resident of Los Alamos.
“We came here in 1969 on a two-year job assignment for my husband at Los Alamos National Laboratory,” she said. “Fifty years later we are still here. Our children grew up here, but now they and their families live in Texas. So, I often combine visits with our kids and grandkids and getting together with my Scout sisters.”
Readers can purchase “Campfire Stew: Fort Worth’s Girl Scout Troop 11” from Amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com, and the book’s publisher, covenantbooks.com. Wood is in the process of setting up local book readings and signings.
