Girl Scouts warming up for 100th year of cookie sales
More than 1,000 Girl Scouts will descend on the Bren Events Center at UC Irvine on Sunday for a rally to prepare for the 2017 cookie sales season that will run Jan. 29 through March 12, featuring an addition to the roster, the S’mores Cookie.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the first known Girl Scouts cookie sale, according to Julie Weeks, Girl Scouts vice president of marketing and communications.
“Girl Scout cookies have become an indelible part of American pop culture, but it’s also so much more than that,” Weeks said. “It’s giving girls skills in sales, management, business and having them become what we call GIRLs — go-getters, innovators, risk takers and leaders.”
The annual rally to get local Girl Scouts pumped up for cookie sales began in 2008 for Irvine girls and was chaired by parent volunteer Susan Berkel.
Over the years, the event grew to include all Girl Scouts in Orange County. Girls from outside the county also are invited.
“As a mom and a Girl Scout troop leader, my focus is on building leaders who will have money-management and goal-setting skills,” Berkel said. “If you think about it, when you have people applying for an entry-level job, these girls will have 10 years of experience in goal setting, management and analytical thinking.”
The rally Sunday will feature musical performances and the debut of a new Girl Scouts national anthem.
Girls will learn about the Scouts’ digital platform for online cookie sales, the mobile app for credit card processing and direct shipping, and how to give cookies to the military and local food banks.
They’ll also have the chance to exchange cookie-selling strategies.
And they’ll get to sample the new S’mores Cookie.
“We’ve deliberately released it to coincide with the [anniversary] ... and to give the connection to s’mores and the great outdoors,” said Ronda Sussman, product sales director with Girl Scouts of Orange County. “Everyone I’ve known who has tried it has given it rave reviews.”
The recipe for the new cookie will vary by region, but Girl Scouts of Orange County’s will include a crispy graham cracker with a cream icing inside and a chocolate coating on the outside, Sussman said.
Twitter: @AlexandraChan10
