Camp Timber Ridge Centennial Celebration

 By Jaclyn M.

In September, the beloved Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta’s Camp Timber Ridge celebrated a big milestone, its centennial anniversary! 100 years ago, Timber Ridge was founded out of a need for a local Girl Scout camp for the community. An entire century later, it is still serving girls from all over the Greater Atlanta council. According to the archive’s records, Camp Timber Ridge has served about 93,000 girls! 

Personally, it was very special for me to be able to cover Camp Timber Ridge’s Centennial Celebration because I have been coming to Camp Timber Ridge since I was a little Daisy Girl Scout, and it was the first Girl Scout camp I went to. My mom also came here as a girl with my grandma as her troop leader, and while talking to other people during the celebration, the memories of this camp go back generations as well. 

At the celebration, there were many activities available including archery, tie dye, leather works, a climbing wall, s’mores & songs, and canoeing around Lake Ellen Bryan.

All the activities led up to the centennial ceremony to close out the event. Many people, including Camp Director Connie Crunkleton, and council staff gave speeches, and Mayor Michael Owens issued a proclamation for the camp.  

Here are some interviews with people I talked to around the activities (some wording may be slightly edited for print): 

I also had the pleasure of interviewing Mayor Owens! Here’s what he had to say.

Lime Green Giraffe: How does Timber Ridge affect the community?

Mayor Owens: Timber Ridge affects the community in many ways; number one, it provides this natural nature preserve for young girls, and campers from all around the metro Atlanta area, right? So, as you probably know, Mableton just became a city, and having this here within the city we are incredibly proud of that. There are other things as well, you know anytime we have visitors coming from different parts of the metro area, they want to see what’s going on, and they are driving in and driving out, it gives us, as a city, the chance to say “Hey, you’re in Mableton, your here, so why don’t you stop at the stores, why don’t you stop at the restaurants, there’s a Guthrie’s down the street, a lot of people, a lot of kids love Guthries, so, but it really does give an opportunity, hopefully, to expand other opportunities, you know, if we can use camp Timber Ridge as somewhat of a model to say, “Hey, you can have an outdoors nature kind of place right here, this close to Atlanta, and can be successful. It’s been successful for a hundred years." I think there are other things we could do within the city to bring more people into nature, more trails, more hiking areas, zip-lining. I’ve got some other cool ideas I’d like to bring in.

LGG: Do you have a personal connection to Girl Scouts and Timber Ridge?

MO: I have plenty of cousins who were Girl Scouts. To Camp Timber Ridge, no. The only way I found out Camp Timber Ridge was here, was I used to know someone who lived on North Allen road right up the street, and that’s how I found out all of this was here, and then I immediately went on to Google maps, to look at it, and then I was amazed! I was floored at how large it was, and then how many buildings were on it. So that got me interested and I started doing some research about it and found out just how important it is to the greater Atlanta community for Girl Scouting, and I can tell you, it’s made me proud. I talk to people around different parts of Atlanta and I tell them that we have a Girl Scout camp right here, that most girls have visited, 93,000. I can’t wait for 100,000!

LGG: How have you seen Camp Timber Ridge evolve during your time in Mableton?

MO: I’ll give you a real easy example for that, it went from not being 100 years old to being a hundred years old. And that is, I mean, we joke about it, but that is remarkable! 100 years old! I mean that is, 1924, first of all none of us were around in 1924. not even close, but to imagine what life was like in 1924… cars had only been around for a couple of decades maybe. Airplane flight was in its infancy, there were no commercial flights; the transportation system hadn’t even gotten off the ground yet. I’m sure Atlanta, at only 10 to 20 miles away, was a long way away, right? Just to think, now it’s this place where people from all over can come to, and I really think about what 100 years means for this camp, and what the next 100 years will look like, and the fact that, now that Mableton is a city, what is this city going to look like in another 100 years? What is this camp going to look like in a hundred years? One thing that I can tell you, is that I hope this camp is still here. I hope that it’s still protected. I hope it’s still a place of serenity, and of nature, that young women and girls can come to and thoroughly enjoy themselves. So, I’ll do my part to make sure that happens.

LGG: What would you like to see from Camp Timber Ridge in the next 100 years?

MO: That’s kind of where we were going right? What would I like to see in the next century? Hmm, I’d like to see it preserved. I want it to still be here. I think that is the one single most important thing; we’ve got to make sure that it’s still here. And you know, again, having a city here now, I think gives us that opportunity, to protect it, and make sure that it’s still here—maybe 200,000 girls will have come through? 250,000 girls will have come through? What else? I want to make sure that we find ways to expand leadership opportunities for young girls and women who will go forward to lead in business, lead in politics, to lead this country, and to lead in all things, and so that’s what I hope this camp can produce, the immense number of leaders that will come from this camp.

LGG: What is your favorite Girl Scout cookie?

MO: Smooth…lemon…(Lemon Up)? Yes, Lemon ups!

I also had the pleasure of speaking with Camp Director Connie Crunkleton.

Lime Green Giraffe: What do you love most about your job?

Director Crunkleton: So, I’m going to tell you two things I love about my job. The first thing I love most is that everything is constantly changing, and so, I absolutely love to be able to just do so many different things at one time. I think it fits my personality, it keeps me engaged, and it keeps the job fun for me. Now, the camp magic personal moments are watching counselors come in as staff and being so unsure of themselves, and then, the very first group of campers they get, just owning it and being able to lead it so well. And watching their face light up and how proud that they are of themselves, just, is a chain reaction that I will never get tired of.

LGG: What is your favorite thing about getting to be here for this milestone?

DC: So, I love history, and so I have been digging deep into the history. The history here is amazing! It was almost eye opening because I realize that the people before us did so well at keeping records, and we’ve turned so digital, that we forget to keep records like they did. And so, it’s very hard to find some of the (recent) records. For me, it’s important because it has shown how much (good record keeping) is needed, because in the next 100 years, I want them to know what we did here today, as well.

LGG: Did you come here when you were a Girl Scout?

DC: So, I did not live in Georgia when was a Girl Scout, I started here as a seasonal (staff member) in 2008, and so this is my 15th summer at a Girl Scout camp, this is my 8th summer here and four of them have been as the director.

DC: What is your favorite Girl Scout Cookie?

CC: Adventurefuls 

I also had the chance to meet people as I explored camp and the activities before the ceremony.

Erin Lee

Lime Green Giraffe: How long have you been involved with Girl Scouts?

Erin Lee: I was a Girl Scout in Chattanooga in the 90s, I was a Brownie Girl Scout, all the way to Cadette.

LGG: What is your current position with Girl Scouts?

EL: Currently, I’m not involved because I’ve been having children, but I would like to rejoin when the time is right.

LGG: What are you most excited for with the ceremony today?

EL: I look forward to singing some camp songs around the fire.

Cheryl Marko

LGG: What is your position in Girl Scouts?


Cheryl Marko: I’m business manager for Sassafras Day Camp up on Lake Altoona, and I’m treasurer for Northwest Georgia Trefoil Guild which is Girl Scouts for adults, and I’m committee chair for Laugh & Learn Volunteer Weekend, which is an event we do every year for adult Girl Scouts, and I’m a general volunteer with Girl Scouts.

LGG: What is your favorite thing about volunteering with Girl Scouts?

CM: Well, I really believe in the mission, and I like to spread the word, and I think  that a lot of families and girls don’t really understand that they’re really part of an international organization, so I like to educate, and I’ve been to all 5 of our Girl Scout World Centers: in India, Switzerland, England, Mexico, and I went to Uganda in Africa. Girl Scouting is a lifetime of fun, it doesn’t just end when you go to middle school because the big opportunities happen after that.

LGG: Why are you most excited to be here today? 

CM: Just kind of reminiscing; my daughter and I did Mom & Me camp here when she first joined in 2001. I was not a Girl Scout as a girl so all of my Girl Scouting has been with my daughter, and it has been wonderful building those memories with her.

Bridget & Heather

Lime Green Giraffe: Were you a Girl Scout?

Bridget: For a very short time, yes, for one year.

LGG: What is your connection to Girl Scouts?

B: My kids have been to their first meeting, and they are Daisies. And then, my friend here (referring to Heather), I saw this posted on LinkedIn, and that’s why I knew to come.

Heather: Let’s see, I’ve been connected to Girl Scouts for about 20 years, on and off.

LGG: Why are you most excited to be here today?


B: Oh, i’ve never been to this camp! I don’t know! (Turns to Heather) Why are you excited?

H: You’ve never been here?

B: No and it’s amazing! I was like let’s go celebrate!

H: So, I’ve been here before, but only a few times. And, my friends such as Marnye Hall for example, Jessica Nasca, Joey Rosenburg, they are all very long term Girl Scouts, they still volunteer with Girl Scouts, and I'm here with them, supporting them, and since they were campers here, celebrating with them. And we have a little girl who is 5, and so we are showing her around and where everybody went to camp.

LGG: Do you volunteer with Girl Scouts?

B: I’m the Cookie Queen of our troop. So I guess so; we have a big garage, and apparently that’s how we got nominated.

H: I’ve previously volunteered with Girl Scouts; I was on the web committee many years ago.

Jill Otto & Valerie King 

LGG: What are your positions in Girl Scouts?

Jill Otto & Valerie King: Co-Leaders!!!

LGG: How long have you been involved with Girl Scouts?

JO: Not consistently since I was 5, but since I had children just for the last two years, when they were old enough.

VK: I have eight or nine years as a kid and one year as a leader.

LGG: Did you come to Timber Ridge as a girl?

JO: Yes, I did. Whippoorwill was my first campsite, and everybody’s heard so much about it. I’m like, “We need to go to Whippoorwill for our first campout!” So yeah, when I found out (that section) was re-opening and they were having a 100-year celebration, we decided to come.

VK: No, I am from The Two Rivers in Florida.

LGG: What are you the most excited for coming here today?


VK: Learning about platform tenting, we are very excited to do outdoor stuff with our troop.

JO: And, having the girls just see what campsites look like, and being outdoors, and what it means to walk around and get a little sweaty, and a little uncomfortable but it feels great…that feeling!

VK: And even seeing older Girl Scouts like yourself.

Coraline (Brownie), Cora  (Daisy) & Evelyn  (Brownie)

LGG: What has been your favorite activity today?

Evelyn: Making this rock pile!

Cora: Tie Dye.

Coraline: Tie Dye & crafts.

Above is a picture of me and a fellow Lime Green Giraffe with Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta’s new board chair, Susan Lazaro  and former board chair, Sonnet Edmunds.

That sums it up! I hope this article inspired you to check out Camp Timber Ridge if you’ve never been. Happy 100th birthday to Camp Timber Ridge and we wish you many more!