Thirteen Years of Friendship

The mega bed was born of necessity and nerves. Eight Girl Scouts, away from home for one of their first overnight camping trips, discovered they couldn’t push their bunk beds together at Camp Casa Mare. So they did what Girl Scouts do: They problem-solved. 

“We made a mega bed,” Alexa Camp recalled with a laugh. “And we all slept together, and it was like 102 outside, so it was boiling in there, but we didn’t move. We had to stick to our guns.”

COOKIE TIME Aria Jin and Skylar Campbell selling cookies near the end of their elementary years. Selling cookies provides many life lessons for the Scouts, including building confidence speaking to adults, not being disappointed when someone doesn't buy, and coming up with a goal on how to spend the earnings wisely. The girls always did a combination of donating money back to the community and spending some on an outdoor trip.

That was nearly a decade ago, when the girls of Troop 147007 were seven or eight years old, experiencing their first night away from their parents. Now, at 17 and 18, they’ve just returned from their final adventure together – a five-day Royal Caribbean cruise to Cozumel – before dispersing to colleges across North America.

“I still feel like I’m moving on the ship because literally, we just got off a few hours ago,” said Tania Campbell, one of three troop leaders who have shepherded these girls since kindergarten. The mothers and daughters conducted three interviews over three months from their respective homes in Houston, voices chiming in over video chat, beginning in July with a journey back in time, ending on Labor Day with the excitement of their journey still palpable in the afternoon heat.

PLANTING SEEDS Here, the girls were in kindergarten and Daisies and were working together to plant seeds. One of the first troop meetings started with screen-free fun, making new friends, and learning about the world. Twins Anneliese and Isabelle DeGrange looking up.

An Unlikely Beginning

It started, as many lasting friendships do, with a moment of mutual uncertainty. At a Girl Scout open house at Horn Elementary 13 years ago, the organization asked for volunteer troop leaders. Alexa’s mom, Tina Villard, and Tania, who had met through Bellaire Young Mothers, looked at each other across the room.

“I’ll do it if you do it,” they decided, as Tania recalls it.

ADVENTURES AT SEA The Scouts are pictured with Royal Caribbean Mariner of the Seas ship in the background.

Neither had been a Girl Scout, so there was a lot to learn. “There’s a lot that goes into it,” Tina admits. But being a leader comes with orientation and trainings and lots of paperwork – “making sure that we were doing all the right things through each level that the girls got through.”

Soon after, Erique DeGrange joined them – a former Girl Scout herself and a teacher who brought invaluable experience to the trio. “I actually don’t really remember not having Erique there,” Tina said. “Pretty quickly, I think we talked her into being the third mom and the third troop leader.”

The three women, all working mothers, crafted a vision that was both ambitious and achievable. It needed to be something not too overwhelming – “Maybe we meet monthly, maybe not as frequent, but we’re going to meet,” recalled Tania. “We’re going to keep this consistent, keep it stable, and learn throughout this experience.”

CAMPING DURING COVID During Covid years, it felt safest to be outside. In 2020, the girls went on their first backpacking trip. They spent one weekend carrying in and carrying out all of their sleeping gear, clothes, and food in the cold weather. They learned to build their own fires with kindling they found, and ate their first dehydrated backpacking meals. The plastic bags on shoes were to prevent disasters from happening by accidentally stepping on those cow patties. Girls pictured include Sloane Smith, Alexa Camp, Jenna Mirza, Isabelle DeGrange, Anneliese DeGrange, Skylar Campbell, Aria Jin, and Eden Harris.

Growing Apart, Growing Together

The Horn years were all about discovery – learning songs, geocaching in the park, and their first sleepover at Misty Meadows. It was a safe, joyful space, and none of them imagined how much they’d need that anchor once middle school pulled them in different directions.

When middle school arrived, the troop faced its first real test. The girls scattered to four or five different schools. For many friendships, this might have been the end. For Troop 147007, it became their reason to continue.

“I was scared, and I was sad,” Anneliese DeGrange, Erique’s daughter, remembered about the separation. “We all got phones. We started texting, and Girl Scouts also helped salvage all these friendships.”

GIVING BACK IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD Introducing the girls to connecting and giving back to their community started early by making treats for the Bellaire Fire department. This turned out to be a favorite trip where the firefighters invited them in and they were able to tour the station. The firefighters even shared their pizza with the girls. Pictured are Anneliese and Isabelle DeGrange, Sloane Smith, Jenna Mirza, Alexa Camp, and Skylar Campbell.

Isabelle DeGrange, Anneliese’s twin sister, agreed. “I think Girl Scouts really became an intentional way for us to see each other and keep up these friendships,” she said.

The monthly meetings became an anchor in their changing lives. “Because they were so consistent,” explained Skylar Campbell, Tania’s daughter, “I could look forward to those monthly meetings where I would see all the same faces. And, honestly, I feel like half of our meetings were just us catching up on what was happening at each other’s schools.”

Even during Covid-19, when the world shut down, the troop found ways to maintain their connection. They met in parks, properly distanced, doing yoga and talking. They held virtual meetings that became lifelines during isolation. “I really appreciated having these set times to see people, just to talk about the crazy life events that were going on,” Isabelle recalls.

The girls found ways to serve their community during the pandemic. Aria Jin describes how she and Eden Harris organized a project where students made hundreds of cards for Texas Children’s Hospital nurses: “We know that during Covid it was really hard for them having so many losses, and so we just wanted to show appreciation.”

FROM COOKIE BOOTHS TO CARIBBEAN SUNSETS Troop 147007 has done it all. After 13 years together, these Girl Scout ambassadors celebrated their journey with a cruise to Cozumel, Mexico, capping a legacy of leadership with Bronze, Silver, and now Gold Awards for several troop members. Pictured, from left, are Aria Jin, Alexa Camp, Sloane Smith, Jenna Mirza, Anneliese DeGrange, Isabelle DeGrange, Skylar Campbell, and Eden Harris. These girls all earned their Bronze (2019) and Silver (2021) awards, which count towards prerequisites for the Gold Award. Current Gold Award recipients are Skylar, Sloane, and Isabelle (as of Nov. 2025). The Gold Award is the highest and most prestigious award that Girl Scouts can earn. 

Learning by Doing

Over 13 years, the troop has tackled projects that would challenge many adults. They’ve built sidewalks to make garden paths wheelchair-accessible at Pershing Middle School. They’ve seeded bluebonnets at Willow Waterhole Greenway that still bloom each spring. They’ve made blankets for animal shelters, written conservation essays, and raised funds through countless cookie sales.

“I never would have ever thought I would have done that,” Anneliese says about the sidewalk project. “We put in the sand. We leveled the pavers. It was something I never would have done. But it was actually really fun. And I think it was really cool that I got to say I helped build a sidewalk.”

SAILING TOGETHER Skylar Campbell, Isabelle DeGrange, Alexa Camp, and Anneliese DeGrange, whose friendship grew deeper at the Girl Scout sleepaway sailing camp at Casa Mare. The girls supported each other with the challenges of learning to sail along the Galveston coast and played games when the storms rolled in.

These weren’t just service projects – they were lessons in perseverance, problem-solving, and leadership. Each girl has achieved her Bronze and Silver Awards, and many are now completing their Gold Awards, the highest achievement in Girl Scouting. Isabelle is publishing a children’s book as her Gold Award project.

“I remember when I first conceptualized that idea I was like, there is no way in a million years this is ever gonna actually happen,” she said with a laugh. “But every day that I showed up to work on it I got a little bit closer, and now I’m at the point where I’m having final conversations with a publisher.”

The troop has provided an education that goes beyond what school or sports can offer. They’ve learned budgeting through cookie sales, saving money over years for big events like the cruise. They’ve practiced public speaking by approaching strangers to sell cookies outside grocery stores. Most importantly, they’ve learned that leadership can be quiet and collaborative.

“I think that Girl Scouts has taught me that being a leader is often more silent than people realize,” Skylar observed. “Leadership isn’t always about just being the loudest; it’s about doing a lot of the work behind the scenes that not everyone sees.”

CRUISIN' The entire group with leaders on catamaran in front of Royal Caribbean cruise ship. Pictured are Isabelle DeGrange, Skylar Campbell, Eden Harris, Aria Jin, Erique DeGrange, Alexa Camp, Tania Campbell, Sloane Smith, Tina Villard, Jenna Mirza, and Anneliese DeGrange. The girls voted and picked this adventure which included snorkeling, playing in a private beach with water activities, and unlimited dancing on the catamaran.

The Floating City

The cruise – a first for almost everyone – was everything they’d hoped and more. The ship felt like “a floating city,” Erique said, with ice skating rinks, rock climbing walls, and shows featuring triple axels performed on ice at sea.

But the most treasured moments were the simple ones. “I definitely thought just having free time to spend with these girls I’ve known my whole life, was really special,” Isabelle reflects. “We normally don’t ever get to do that. And that was something really special that I think I’ll remember.”

They danced everywhere – in elevators with strangers who joined their impromptu parties, at karaoke every night, during ’80s night on Deck Five. They maintained their buddy system, negotiating between Anneliese’s desire to tan and Alexa’s need for shade. They snorkeled together, spotting “Dory” fish and brain coral, dodging tiny jellyfish, and watching flying fish leap from the waves only to be caught by seabirds.

At formal dinner one night, Tania gave each girl a Girl Scout-themed bracelet. “It was in that kind of moment,” Isabelle said, “I was like, wow, this group of girls that have been with me through this organization for almost my entire life, almost as long as I’ve been alive – we’re all going to split up… and it’s imminent, you know?”

SWEET MOMENTS The last dinner on the cruise, the girls shared all the fun things they had done and all the things they were looking forward to as seniors. They loved ordering multiple desserts.

More Than Friends

Ask these young women what they’ve found in each other, and the word that keeps surfacing isn’t “friend” – it’s “family.”

“I’ve always wanted a sister,” Alexa says. “And I just literally looked to my left and saw Anneliese. My whole life, I’ve wanted a younger sister... And I’m just now realizing, I always had one. It just wasn’t the way that I expected it to be.”

AROUND THE TABLE The troop enjoyed family dinners together at sea. Dessert was everyone's favorite course.

The feelings are mutual. “I literally love her,” Anneliese says of Alexa. “I think about her every day. And I can’t imagine life without her.”

Several of the girls have already designated each other as future maids of honor. They talk about their bond as unconditional, unbreakable, something that transcends the typical boundaries of friendship.

“We just know that we’re always going to be a part of each other’s hearts,” Anneliese explains. “We don’t need to talk or hang out every day. We just know that we’re so important to each other.”

The three troop leaders have discovered the same thing. “These ladies will be in my life for the rest of my life,” Erique said. “And that was sort of an unexpected outcome for me as well.”

INTERACTIVE Erique DeGrange started as a troop cookie mom, but a lot of the parents took turns teaching the girls how to explore for their interests. Scouts pictured include Aria Jin with marker in her mouth and Skylar Campbell next to Erique. As that age is challenging to keep kids' attention, the trop moms worked to keep meetings interactive and fun. Meetings always end with a friendship circle.

“I feel like Erique, Tania, and I are not going to disconnect,” Tina agreed. “I mean, I think there’s been times even during the summer where the three of us would get together, even outside of the Girl Scout stuff.”

They’re already talking about maintaining their meetings, just as friends rather than as a troop. The mothers joke about future reunions, knowing they’ll be “crying on each other’s shoulders” when the girls leave for college.

Camping on Tania’s property near Point Blank, the girls have learned that even when trucks get hopelessly stuck in mud, even when someone falls face-first into a creek, even when you try to use cow patties as kindling and smoke up the entire campsite with the smell – you figure it out together. You find a solution. You laugh about it later.

“Girl Scouts taught me that really you can do it and it’s fine,” Anneliese says. “It really broadened my horizons by a lot.”

BRONZE AWARD The troop came together to work on their Bronze award with a project taking donations to formerly Westbury Cares (now Houston Cares) Animal Rescue. Pictured on the right are Skylar Campbell, Alexa Camp, and Jenna Mirza. The girls had fun learning about what a nonprofit does, fundraising, using some of the troop cookie earnings to give back to the shelter, and interacting with the animals.

As Troop 147007 prepares to close this chapter, they carry with them 13 years of inside jokes, traditions, and memories. They still end every meeting the same way they always have, standing in a circle with arms crossed right over left, singing a Girl Scout song about friendship. Someone always gets the hands wrong; someone always ends up in “a puddle of giggles,” as Erique describes it.

But that’s what makes it perfect. That’s what makes it theirs.

WIND AND WATER The wind blows in the girls' hair at the front of the ship. Pictured are Jenna Mirza, Sloane Smith, Alexa Camp, Isabelle DeGrange, Skylar Campbell, Anneliese DeGrange, Aria Jin, and Eden Harris.

“We were very goofy,” Aria says simply, and in those three words lies the secret to their success: They were allowed to fail, encouraged to try, and given the space to be exactly who they were, together.

The cruise may be over, the troop meetings may be ending, but for eight young women and three mothers in Houston, the voyage continues. They’ve built something stronger than any sidewalk, more enduring than wildflowers, more valuable than all the cookies they’ve ever sold: a family bound not by blood, but by choice, time, and “13 years of funny moments,” as Anneliese puts it, that have become the foundation for lifetimes of friendship ahead.