Forget your New Year’s resolution to eat less sweets. The Girl
Scouts are coming and there is no use resisting their tempting
array of thin mints, Samoas and other baked goodies the troop will
sell outside of stores and throughout Hollister neighborhoods.
Hollister – Forget your New Year’s resolution to eat less sweets. The Girl Scouts are coming and there is no use resisting their tempting array of thin mints, Samoas and other baked goodies the troop will sell outside of stores and throughout Hollister neighborhoods.
On Jan 14, the organization kicks off the start of the organization’s cookie sales program that is a fund raiser for one of the largest all-girls programs in the country. Before the Girl Scouts start taking orders next week, they’ll hold a Cookie Rally on Saturday in Watsonville, where they will learn about the types of cookies they will be selling, practice making change and even sample the product. The cookies, which the Girl Scouts have sold for over 70 years, have become so popular that many people now buy dozens of boxes and store them in their refrigerators to enjoy year-round.
Thin mints are the top-seller for the organization, followed by Samoas and Caramel deLites and Peanut Butter Patties and Tagalongs. All cookies are kosher.
Besides being a fund raiser for community service projects, trips and activities that lead to badges, the cookie sales teach the girls important lessons in leadership, organization and sales and marketing.
Over 373,000 boxes of cookies were sold last year, raising over $200,000 for Girl Scout troupes in the Monterey Bay. The organization gets approximately 55 to 66 cents from each $3.50 box of cookies.
“What they get from it is very personal,” said Gaile Patton, product sales manager at the Girl Scouts of Monterey Bay. “For one girl, the goal could be to be able to approach a person, while for another it’s about learning to interact with the public.”
Carla Dore, a troupe leader who lives in Hollister, has witnessed her own daughters’ transformation, both of whom went through the program. Her youngest daughter, Athena, 12, was so shy at first, she was afraid to perform a skit during on the group’s camping trip. But in the three years she has been a Girl Scout, she has learned to be more self-assured and not as timid about expressing herself. The change has been similar for other girls as well.
“They have learned about fire safety and first aid,” said Dore, 42. “It just opens up new and exciting things for them.”
Girls Scouts has a powerful presence in San Benito County and the region, with 29 troupes in Hollister and over 5,000 girls in the Monterey Bay region.
Studies have shown that girls are more likely to have a voice in an all-girl environment, which contributes to their self-esteem while teaching them important life skills such as leadership and decision making, said Patton.
“Whether they go into the job market or are a stay-at-home mom, they can use these skills in their lives,” she said.
Karina Ioffee covers education for the Free Lance. Reach her at (831)637-5566 ext. 335 or [email protected]
