Contributions by Shefali Arimilli
Girl Scouts of all ages have begun their annual cookie sales, introducing some new flavors such as Rah-Rah Raisin and Gluten Free Toffee-tastics, and bringing back old favorites like Thin Mints. However, finding a cookie seller this year in high school has proven difficult. Some girls have decided to opt out of selling to focus on their other projects such as the Gold Award.
“Usually we sell cookies, but this year we are just selling one box so we can all do our fundraiser for our Gold Award because that’s a technicality,” Lily Powell ‘16 said. “A lot of us are working on our Gold Awards and we are all juniors at Westwood High School so we have a lot to do. The Gold Award is like the Eagle Award and needs 80 hours of service, so we are all really preoccupied by that.”
Other girls have found that the principles of cookie selling are not as important to a Girl Scout as the team building and adventures they get out of the program.
“Selling cookies is actually the worst part of Girl Scouts,” Sofia Martinez ’18 said. “It is so time consuming and doesn’t even make that much money. Our cookies are all that people think of Girl Scouts, but there is really so much more to it than that.”
Despite this, many girls still sell the cookies as a fundraiser for destinations and other activities, and there are many customers willing to support them.
“I am trying to go on a trip to Scotland,” Kate Nettles ‘15 said. “It is with a trip called Destinations which is where Girl Scouts around the U.S. can go together on vacation. I applied to several and got into all of them, but chose Scotland.”
There, the girls have the opportunity to meet other scouts from around the U.S. to making lasting relationships while exploring different parts of the world.
Other scouts use the funds for other local activities such as camping.
“In the past we have done different things, like zip lining and visited different places with the money we have raised,” Maryam Ali ‘17 said.
Despite their purpose, all Girl Scouts are able to connect with their community by selling cookies and hosting various fundraisers.
