For the first year in many, my daughter is not part of a girl scout troop and we are not selling cookies.  The lessons in communication and organization that she learned from the sales will always be with her and benefit her all of her life.

Lucky for us, there are many options for getting our Thin Mint and Shortbread fixes.  Orland Park Patch has come up with a great idea and is posting contacts for just this reason.

The money earned from selling cookies enables troop leaders to provide activities, learning experiences, charitable donations to local communities and more to the girls and is vital to their yearly expenses.  

Last year, my daughter’s troop made their way to the local Walmart with their earnings to buy groceries for the local food pantry.  In doing so, they learned so much.  By shopping for  sales and deals, they learned how to get the most for their money.  They price matched sales at other stores and used coupons to ensure they could provide the most food to the pantry as possible with the money they had to work with.  As the girls made their way around the grocery store, the nutritional benefits of items were discussed and the girls asked questions like “will this food go to kids like us?” and statements like “I never thought about not having food to eat, it was always just there for me” were made.

What they learned that day was priceless.  This is just one example of the importance of supporting local scouting.  Cookie sale time just makes it easier for us to show our support.

Here is a link to the many varieties available.

So take a moment and support a local girl scout troop and your sweet tooth at the same time.  Boxes of cookies freeze well and make great gifts!

Good luck girls!