ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – A group of 24 girl scouts got the opportunity to work firsthand with first responders, learning the ins and outs of the job and picking up some of their skill sets.
Camp Fury STL is helping the future of the force while empowering girls.
Multiple Missouri police and fire agencies supported the camp, but the St. Louis County Police Department and Wellston Fire were the ones who taught the girls about public safety skills. Through the agencies, the campers are learning everything from search and rescue skills, crime scene investigation tactics, and confidence-boosting through adrenaline-driven activities such as aerial climbing, rappelling, canine tracking, and even extinguishing a live fire.
On Wednesday, the Scouts left their saddled site at Camp Fiddlecreek to take on some work at the St. Louis County Police Crime Lab. It covered over 60 municipalities; the team at the crime lab taught techniques in digital forensics, firearms and tool marks, fingerprints, arson, explosion, as well as DNA recovery.
According to Julie Kronable, a forensics scientist at the facility, experiencing what happens in the lab gives the youngsters a chance to see a different side of the industry.
“I loved science, I didn’t necessarily want to be out on the streets, but I get to still deal with criminal justice and be a part of that, make a difference,” she said.
Kronable said people don’t always think about the investigative work that isn’t done in the field.
“The girl scouts are going to get the opportunity to come spend the afternoon as if they were a forensic scientist,” Kronable said.
Thanks to Camp Fury, the Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri are rappelling down a 40-foot building, extinguishing fires, and learning crime lab skills.
“It’s such a cool experience that nobody else gets to participate in,” said one of the girl scouts who’s been a part of the Camp Fury experience for two years.
“To see their confidence build and their questions, and interactions, it really reminds us of what we do and builds our confidence too,” Kronable said.
The first responders’ goal is to recruit more women, and the feedback from one 14-year-old girl learning about arson and explosives has only fueled the interest.
“This has always been on my list of possible careers to go into,” said a girl scout.
From observing confiscated evidence and lots of recovered guns, these young teens have many questions.
“How do you deal with the mental aspect of this? How do you go through this as a person and see all this trauma, all this suffering?” said one scout.
Now, they’re hoping to inspire other girls.
“I feel like I really grew into myself and my character,” said one of the teens.
Once you build up the mindset, Kronable said it’s time to “jump in all the way.”
Come Friday, the girl scouts will graduate from camp, walking away with techniques and skill sets of local first-responding agencies.