South Florida Sun-Sentinel Palm Beach (Sunday)
It’s Thin Mint time! Girl Scout cookies on sale now
South Florida Sun Sentinel
It’s back to the basics for the Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida’s annual cookie sale. With no new flavors in the lineup this year, seven traditional and two specialty cookies are taking center stage.
Clear out the freezer and stock up on your favorites now through Feb. 29 as
Girl Scouts set up in front of grocery stores, restaurants and other businesses with boxes of Samoas, Thin Mints, Tagalongs, Do-sidos, Trefoils, Lemon-Ups, Adventurefuls, Girl Scout S’mores and gluten-free Toffee-tastic cookies.
Raspberry Rally, which debuted last year as an online-only flavor, is not returning to the lineup.
If you order through the Digital Cookie platform, they can be delivered by a Girl Scout, shipped directly to a location, or donated.
“When you buy cookies from a Girl Scout, you’re investing in so much more than just a box of treats — you’re investing in their future by creating opportunities for them to learn, grow and thrive,” said Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida spokeswoman Melinda Glasco.
The Girl Scouts cookie sale has come a long way since it first went nationwide in the 1920s, when girls and their mothers made sugar cookies in their own kitchens using a recipe featured in American Girl magazine. They packaged the cookies in wax paper bags sealed with a sticker and sold them door to door for 25 to 35 cents a dozen, according to the Girl Scouts of the USA’s website.
Last year, the Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida saw a record-breaking $1.5 million in proceeds earned by the troops from the sale, with more than 1.4 million boxes purchased — a 16.71% increase from 2022. Of those, 464,000 boxes were sold through the Digital Cookie platform, where sales were up nearly 26%.
“Last year, we saw a rebound in cookie sales after the COVID-19 pandemic,” Glasco said. “Girl Scouts were able to be out at all of their favorite locations hosting cookie booths, and many more locations felt comfortable saying yes to allowing Girl Scouts to sell cookies at their businesses.”
With more than 3,800 Girl Scouts participating last year, about 369 boxes were sold per girl compared with 326 the previous year.
While sales are up, cookie prices are not. Boxes are $5 ($6 for S’mores and Toffee-Tastic), which is the same as last year.
“The net proceeds from Girl Scout cookie sales stay local, directly supporting our council and local Girl Scout troops. We use these proceeds to fund enriching activities and amazing experiences for girls yearround — like skill-building programs, community projects, outdoor adventures and more,” Glasco said. “The Girl Scout troops also earn rewards and proceeds from their participation.”
COOKIES
FOR THE MILITARY
While Girl Scouts learn about goal-setting, decision-making, money management, people skills and business ethics, the cookie-selling process also teaches them about the importance of giving back.
One way they help is through the Southeast Region’s Cookies for the Military program, which allows supporters to donate boxes or cases of Girl Scout cookies to those serving domestically or overseas.
Now in its 16th year, the program’s goal is to collect donations to send 75,000 boxes of cookies to the troops. They donated about 57,000 boxes to the military in 2023, partnering with nonprofits that provide care packages to soldiers such as Forgotten Soldiers Outreach, Operation Homefront, The American Legion and Soldiers’ Angels.
Give a Box, Get a Box — a one-day promotion from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday, Feb. 16, at all Duffy’s Sports Grill locations in Broward, Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie counties — will give a free box to anyone who donates one to Cookies for the Military.
“They see the value of building female entrepreneurs and the skills that the Girl Scout Cookie Program teaches,” Glasco said about the partnership with Duffy’s Sports Grill and Duffy’s Foundation.
“They also have always had an affinity for our Cookies for the Military program and immediately said yes when we proposed creating a special night where our community could donate to the Cookies for the Military campaign and get a free boxes of cookies to thank them for their support.”
Duffy’s Foundation chairwoman Geri Emmett said the goal is to sell
3,000 boxes at Duffy’s locations to be donated to the Lake Worth Beachbased Forgotten Soldiers Outreach.
“We believe strongly in supporting the Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida and our military. In fact, when there is an occasion for an event that will help both, then Duffy’s Sports Grill is all on board,” she said.
For the fourth year, five Hooters locations in Broward County and one in Palm Beach County also supported the Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida and Cookies for the Military during the cookie sale’s recent opening weekend by matching every box sold at the restaurants up to $15,000.
“We want to provide Cookies for the Military to help give them a taste of home to show we care,” said eight-year Girl Scout veteran Kristi Quarles, spokeswoman for LTP Management, which owns and operates 15 Hooters locations in South Florida.
Visit cookiesforthemilitary. org.
WAYS TO PURCHASE
Cookie Locator: Use their Find Cookies! tool on the website to enter your ZIP code and locate a booth near you at an area Walmart, Publix, WinnDixie, Duffy’s Sports Grill, or other participating business. Text COOKIES to 59618 to receive a link to the tool, or call 561-4270177.
Digital Cookie Store: Purchase online through a troop member’s Digital Cookie Store using a QR code she creates and shares.
Visit gssef.org for more details about the Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida and the cookie sale.