Annual Girl Scout Cookie Program Begins! Girls Become Young Entrepreneurs

It's the tastiest time of the year -- Girl Scout cookie time! Now through mid-March, Girl Scouts will go door-to-door and set up booths at local merchants to sell eight delicious varieties: Thin Mints, Caramel deLites, Peanut Butter Patties, Peanut Butter Sandwich, Shortbread, Thanks-A-Lot, Lemonades, and Cranberry Citrus Crisps. Cookies are $4 per box. If you don't know a Girl Scout #CookieBoss, email your contact info to cookierequest@girlscoutsmoheartland.org to connect with a local Girl Scout to place your order!

All proceeds from Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland's Girl Scout Cookie Program stay within our local council and benefit local Girl Scouts; girls earn troop proceeds and Girl Scout Cookie Credit that can be used to pay for Girl Scout camp, community service projects, Girl Scout uniforms, and more. Additional proceeds help to fund financial assistance, volunteer training and support, and program resources.

The greatest benefit of the Girl Scout Cookie Program, which is the leading entrepreneurial program for girls, is the leadership skills that girls learn. By managing their own cookie program, from initial goal-setting at the beginning to evaluation at the end, girls have a hands-on experience in running a small business. They decide how many boxes of cookies they want to sell, and are then responsible for managing their own resources including time, energy, and family support in order to reach their goals.

The tangible business and life skills that girls learn through the Girl Scout Cookie Program include goal-setting, decision-making, money management, people skills, and business ethics. "Through participation in the Girl Scout Cookie Program, girls learn skills that are essential to leadership, to success, and to life. Girls create a business plan, interact with customers, and work as part of a team," states Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland CEO Anne Soots.

Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland offers a council-wide Girl Scout Cookie Share program, in which customers may purchase cookies to donate. Many troops throughout Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland's 68-county jurisdiction will select a local organization that is special to them, such as a food shelf, family shelter, or military unit. Others will give customers the option to donate cookies to military troops and military family groups, which are this year's council-designated Cookie Share beneficiary. For information about Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland or the Girl Scout Cookie Program, please visit www.girlscoutcookies.org or call 877-312-4764.