EMMA GOSALVEZ/THE EXPRESS At top, members of local Girl Scouts troops pose on the porch of the Bellefonte Little House. Above, Girl Scouts and their friends enjoy a movie night, watching “Hocus Pocus.” Movie night is one of the many activities troop leaders can provide at the Little House.

BELLEFONTE — It is one of 11 left in the United States and has been a safe place for Girl Scouts to meet for the past 55 years.

Since 1962, the Bellefonte Little House has served as a meeting place for the several troops in the greater Bellefonte community and now volunteers are working to preserve the little piece of history.

The house, located at 115 W. Howard St. in Bellefonte, was run by the Bellefonte Girl Scout Council until November of 2015, when the council could no longer afford its upkeep and was planning to abandon it, according to Cindy Krishnak, president of nonprofit Friends of Bellefonte Little House and local service unit manager.

“But a couple of us got together and decided that we really needed to keep this place going,” Krishnak said. “A lot of girl scouts have grown up here, the troops have met here since 1962, and it’s just a safe place for the girls to go, so we’re very passionate about it.”

The Little House used to be an old carriage house on the Miles-Humes property, which was willed to the Centre County Library in the 1930s and the library chose to later let the Bellefonte Girl Scout Council refurbish it, Krishnak said. Not only is the house historically important in Bellefonte, but the overarching Girl Scouts started in 1912 in a carriage house as well, in Savannah, Ga.

Krishnak said that a lot of community members donated time, materials and money to renovate the old building into a little house that Girl Scouts members could come to, have troop meetings and learn to grow there.

Today, approximately 350 girls and adults are serviced out of the little building, Krishnak said. This includes Bellefonte troops and all of the troops in the surrounding areas of Milesburg, Howard and Penns Valley. There are close to 20 adult volunteers, including troop leaders, who help with the house.

A lot of renovations need to be made to maintain the house, something volunteers have been working hard to raise money for through donations and fundraisers.

Among the renovations that are needed are new doors, new windows and more energy-efficient lighting, Krishnak said. The house also needs some fans because it lacks an air conditioner and tends to get very warm. Looking at what the house currently needs, renovation estimates are close to $10,000 and with future kitchen restoration and plumbing needs, it comes close to $20,000.

According to Weiser, volunteers try to hold a different fundraiser every other month. Later in the month of October, a Pampered Chef will be hosted, and a bingo fundraiser, the annual children’s tea for Bellefonte Victorian Christmas, and a cookie fundraiser are on the horizon.

The Little House has proven to be a big help to Girl Scouts troop leaders.

According to Amber Peffer, a relatively new Bellefonte troop leader, having the house and the resources that come with it makes it a lot more simple to walk into the role of troop leader. The cost of supplies for Girl Scouts activities also really adds up. Krishnak said all the supplies needed for meetings and activities are all at the house, as they have been accumulated and donated over time.

The house also makes meetings easier, especially since it is a safe environment that vanishes worries about finding an accommodating meeting place. Krishnak said that quite a few local troops still meet at other places, such as schools, libraries and churches.

The Little House is especially important to the girls it helps.

Emma Simmon, 10, of Bellefonte, is a Girl Scouts member who enjoys the many opportunities the Girl Scouts leaders give to them through meetings at the house.

“I love spending time with most of my friends, and it’s just really fun doing all these activities with them,” Simmon said.

Another Girl Scouts member who appreciates the house’s importance is Julia Weiser, 10, of Bellefonte.

“I enjoy it because it’s history and it’s really nice to have a lot of girls just come and be a part of this opportunity,” she said.

The house has a long history and has played a key role in the evolution of Girl Scouts.

According to Rachelle Weiser, a Bellefonte troop leader, the house used to essentially prepare the girls for womanhood. “The little houses were set up with a full kitchen, with a bathroom, some had carpet, some had tile kinds of floors, so that they can practice housekeeping, baking, cooking, and all of the older patches are now not available for us.”

Today, the Little House’s purpose and Girl Scouts have evolved quite a lot.

At the beginning, Girl Scouts was focused primarily on teaching survival techniques, such as basic first aid, along with sewing and cooking, basic necessities that a woman in the early 20th century needed to know how to do, Weiser said. Now, Girl Scouts is more girl-centered and girl-powered and science, STEM and robotics are being introduced, along with opportunities to explore the outdoors.

“It’s empowering girls to feel more confident about themselves, to go out and be able to do something that they might not know what they’re doing, but they can still do it because they have the confidence to do it,” Weiser said.

In late October, local Girl Scouts troops will have the opportunity to enjoy a mobile STEM van, an activity that the Girls Scouts council in Harrisburg recently added. According to Bellefonte troop leader JoAnna Harter, the girls will get to explore virtual reality and robotics.

“We try to have something every single month for the girls, and that’s important to keep Girl Scouts going,” Weiser said.

To donate to the Friends of Bellefonte Little House, checks can be mailed and made payable to

Friends of Bellefonte Little House, 209 Limestone Drive, Bellefonte, PA 16823. Another way to help is through Amazon Smile by visiting smile.amazon.com and choosing “Friends of Bellefonte Little House” every time an order is placed on Amazon. Amazon will donate 0.4 percent to the Bellefonte Little House.

Anyone interested in volunteering can contact Cindy Krishnak at girlscout.service unit.414@gmail.com or 814-360-7652.