Countless monuments, the Smithsonian Museum and one double-decker bus later, the Girl Scouts in Troop 499 had seen almost all of Washington, D.C. Eight out of the 11 members took the summer trip to the nation’s capital to earn four fun badges earlier this month.
“They were excited about things you wouldn’t think teenagers would like,” Kadien Harwood said about her troop. “But they were.”
The troop loaded into a 12-passenger van and drove 908 miles to East Falls Church outside of Arlington, Va. Only one of the eight girls had been to Washinton, D.C., before.
“It’s cool to do something a little bit different that they wouldn’t get to do with their families,” troop leader Kimberly Harwood said.
The girls visited all the major monuments, took a tour of Congressman Dennis Ross’ office at the Capitol and also explored the White House thanks to Ross. They went through so many metal detectors, they had to exchange their room keys every night.
Georgetown was another big hit with the troop.
“We liked walking around the row houses,” Harwood said. “They were all unique because they were all owned by different people. They all had different character.”
Kadien liked the architecture of many other historic buildings, as well.
“There were so many different styles,” Kadien said.
Double-decker buses were the best way to see the city, including all the monuments, the girls said.
And, although everything went smoothly, they did see some action at the United States Capitol. A suspicious package had been found, and security vacated the premise while the girls were inside. They had to rush to get out of the building before they were locked in while the package was cleared.
“It was a different world,” Harwood said.
Harwood has been a troop leader for nine years. She takes her troops on different summer trips every other year. Once, they went to St Augustine, and another time they visited Savannah, Ga. She doesn’t have any plans to stop. Her daughter still has four more years before she turns 18. And, even after, Harwood is only planning to take a short break.
“It’s good to spend time with her,” Harwood said. “The skills she has learned are just amazing. All the girls. Some are very shy. It’s amazing to see how much change and growth they make.”
Contact Amber Jurgensen at ajurgensen@plantcityobserver.com.
THE TRAVELERS
Kadien Harwood
AJ (Adrianna) Harden
Holly Maxey
Morgan Maxey
Shelby Gerlt
Sydney Palm
Chanel Wade
Ling Xiong
Kimberly Harwood — Leader
Cindy and Stephen Maxey — co-leaders
THE ITINERARY
Tuesday, June 10
The National Archives
United States Capitol
Wednesday, June 11
Double-decker bus monument tour
White House
Monument sightseeing
Arlington National Cemetery
Thursday, June 12
Double-decker bus monument night tour
Georgetown
Friday, June 13
National Museum of American History