Camp Redwing will be downgrading its operations but will remain open despite the closing of other camps in the region.

The Girl Scouts of Western Pennsylvania plans to close five of its nine camps March 31 due to operating deficits.

The Girl Scouts recently reported that only 12 percent of the council's membership attended the camps. Keeping all nine camps resulted in the loss of about $1.4 million annually. The organization will sell the closed camps.

According to Pat Burkart, the organization's CEO, the county's own Camp Redwing in Forward Township will remain open, but with a few changes.

Resident camps, which are staff-led camps, will no longer be offered, but overnight stays are still possible. The camp's primary function will be for day camp, troop camping, service unit camp and weekend events.

Burkart said Redwing is still one of their more popular camps, and many of its visitors are staying overnight. She said removing resident camps optimizes the camp usage.

“Redwing has had the highest foot traffic,” she said. “It's ideal for troop and service camping.”

Burkart said the organization also will no longer have horse programs at Redwing — those will be moved to Camp Skymeadow. She said Skymeadow offers more expansion room for more horses and trails.

While it is losing its horses, Redwing will continue to offer the swimming, archery and other activities it previously offered. It also has Camp Creepy, a new annual event that drew more than 1,000 girls to Redwing this year, according to Burkart.

Burkart said she hopes the new changes and retracted programs don't hinder the opinion of the camp in the scouts' eyes. She said the camp is still a beautiful and practical space.

“The Connoquenessing (Creek) runs through the camp, which is a nice feature,” Burkart said. “There's a lot of different options for campers to enjoy.”

Burkart said she feels confident that this will be the best way to use Redwing, and the same process needs to be applied to all of the other camps as well.

“We have to continue to evaluate based on the usage of the camps,” Burkart said.

In addition to Redwing, other surviving camps include Conshatawba in Cambria County, Hawthorne Ridge in Erie County and Skymeadow in Armstrong County, but the closings have caused some members to question the number of camps that need to be closed.

To show their dislike of the decision to close and sell some of the camps, Girl Scouts staged a demonstration march at the Girl Scouts headquarters in Pittsburgh on Wednesday afternoon and one posted a petition.

According to Lisa Shade, Girl Scouts public relations manager, about 20 scouts and leaders stood outside the building. Some were invited inside to a meeting with Burkart to discuss their questions and concerns.

“We encourage the girls to stand up and speak out,” Shade said. “(The protesters) were glad to have the opportunity to talk to (the leaders.)”

Shade said both sides appeared grateful for the meeting.

A person identifying herself as Laura Anna posted the petition, “Save Singing Hills Camp,” on the website Change.org. The petition has received 360 signatures toward its goal of 500. Many of the reasons listed by those who signed are those of nostalgia.

Beloved as the camps may have been, Burkart said the organization's statistics showed that only 12 percent of council members attended their camps. She said this number can be deceiving because some of its scouts are going to camps outside their territory.

“It's not that the girls aren't interested,” she said. “They just aren't always going to our camps.”

Burkart said she hopes the new changes will go smoothly, and a major goal for the organization is to not lose any programs. She said she plans to move all current programs to one or more of the remaining camps.

She said this will allow the organization to entice the scouts to continue going to their camps.

“We're hoping to consolidate that participation to the camps that are remaining,” she said.

Burkart said optimizing the camps and how they are operated will allow them to not only stabilize their financial situation, but also to grow as an organization and better provide for their scouts. She said this was just the first step forward.

“I think we are definitely on the right track,” Burkart said.