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Photograph by Jacquelyn Ramseyer
Grecia Escobar, left, Kelsey Cross, and Christine Mackensie, from Sunnyvale Brownie Troop 281, get a taste of what it would be like to serve time in jail during the troop's tour of the Sunnyvale Police Department.
Troop 281 Tales
Group of hard-boiled Brownies takes a trip down to public safety headquarters
By William Jeske
It was a Thursday, just like any other--except this time, it was different.
The night shift staff at the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety seemed settled in for just another night of answering phones, pushing pencils and filing reports.
But at 6 p.m. on Jan. 31, a determined group of seven girls, 6 to 8 years old, sporting brown vests, convened in the front parking lot with designs of scoping out the joint.
Their adult leader went by the name of Phyllis Fowler. Rumor had it she had connections with some suit down at city hall.
Troop Leader: Phyllis Fowler looks forward to teaching young women the fundamentals of daily living.
These Brownies, as they were called, were soon intercepted by a public safety liaison. (Either public safety is on top of its game or someone tipped 'em off.)
Officer-in-Training Michael Wright, 19, was on duty and proceeded to escort Brownie Troop 281 on a carefully mapped route of public safety operations. But that night, he was working under his cover name--Officer Mike. (A greenie training to be one of the boys in blue playing tour guide to a troop of Brownies? Only in Sunnyvale.)
Apparently, Troop 281 has been going on field trips and engaging in various fun activities for some time.
Fowler later said that a representative from the Santa Clara County Council of the Girl Scouts of America tried to recruit some leaders when giving a presentation at a neighborhood meeting in Lakewood Village in 1996.
Fowler remembered growing up as a Girl Scout in about six different troops. Her father was Navy brass so she and her family moved frequently around Northern and Southern California.
"My mother was also a Den Mother for my brothers' Cub Scout Den," Fowler said. "She had so much fun being a Den Mother and with all the stuff they did that I wanted to run my Troop like she did.
"That's why we do things like visit the department of public safety and do science experiments (at troop meetings), and not just arts and crafts."
First on Officer Mike's itinerary was to traipse around the public safety's hallways to look at the many displays of academy class photos, plaques, certificates of appreciation, badges of retired officers and large photos of public safety officers doing what they do best--saving lives and fighting fires, usually at the expense of their own well-being.
"We risk a lot to save a lot," Officer Mike said.
Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer
Sunnyvale Brownie Troop 281 recently took a tour of the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety, led by Crime Prevention Specialist Mike Wright. Girl Scout leader Phyllis Fowler, back right, is the wife of Mayor Fred Fowler.
Officer Mike escorted the seemingly unresponsive troop past the break room and empty offices to arrive at what appeared to be the trainee's favorite section--the carport.
Like a kid in a toy store, Officer Mike rattled off specs on the state-of-the-art black and white police cars.
"[The patrol cars] have these 24-valve engines that make them go really fast but are also really quiet so they can sneak up on bad guys," he said.
One girl asked if they could take a look at the inside, but the dejected trainee said he didn't have the authority to gain access to the vehicles. But they could peer into the windows to check out the gadgetry used to catch "bad guys."
"I like that they have all that technology in the front and the bar in the window," Haley Cross, 8, said.
Next stop was to go upstairs to visit the special unit that deals with criminals too dastardly to walk on two feet.
Officer Carly Honfi of Animal Control bantered with the girls about pets and proper pet training and showed them a special snare that she's used to catch cats, dogs and once a pair of socially deviant iguanas bent on wreaking havoc.
Last stop was the place all the girls wanted to go, but hopefully only once in their life.
"My favorite part was [when] we got to go inside the jail," said 8-year-old Grecia Escobar. "We got to see, like, where the prisoners go."
Troop 281's visit was only an hour and half. At 7:30 p.m. public safety returned to its business of keeping Sunnyvale safe, especially from iguanas.
All girls aged 6 through 8, or in first through third grade, are welcome to join the Girl Scouts' Brownie Troop 281. Call Phyllis Fowler at 408.747.1454. Information on the Girl Scouts of America can be accessed at www.girlscouts.org.
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Sunnyvale, California Since 1994
