Girl Scout cookies are arriving this month and fans in Anza will be searching out every delicious variety. Local Girl Scout Troop 1805 is eagerly filling the beginnings of a landslide of orders online.
Cookie season began with early marketing Sunday, Jan. 14 and will continue through Sunday, March 17. Loads of cookies will be picked up by the Scouts Saturday, Jan. 27 and available for sale in Anza Sunday, Jan. 28.
The hardworking young ladies, their families and leaders will soon be seen in person in decorated booths at various locations throughout town. Places and times are shared on social media groups to alert the confection connoisseurs of cookie availability.
“Get your Girl Scout cookies and help the girls reach their goal by purchasing as many boxes as you can,” said Michael Vollan, father of 15-year-old senior Girl Scout Skyy Vollan. “They’re delicious, addicting and only here for a limited time.”
The starting price for cookies is $6.00 per box, with some flavors possibly costing more. Proceeds from the sale of the sweets go to the Girl Scout organization.
Money earned through the sale of the cookies stays local. Clever marketing techniques teach the girls skills they can use to be successful as they mature. Talking to complete strangers, making change, offering products with a smile, answering questions and dedication are all valuable lessons to be learned.
For more than 100 years, Girl Scouts have offered the cookies for sale as a fundraising event. The sale of cookies as a way to finance troop activities began about 1917, in the very beginning years of the Girl Scouts. The simple sugar cookies were originally baked by scouts and other helpers and sold by the girls door to door.
By 1922, cookies could be purchased for 25 cents a dozen, wrapped in wax paper and sealed with a sticker.
In 1935, the sale of commercially baked cookies was developed, and the words “Girl Scout Cookies” on the box was first made available. In 1936, the national Girl Scout organization started the process of licensing the first commercial bakers to produce cookies that could be sold nationwide. By 1937, over 125 Girl Scout councils had cookie sales.
During WWII, because of food shortages, the Girl Scouts sold calendars instead of cookies, but after the war, cookie sales boomed. By 1948, 29 bakers were licensed to make Girl Scout Cookies.
In 1951, Sandwich, Shortbread, and Chocolate Mints were offered and by 1966, Peanut Butter Sandwich cookies were added, along with a couple more varieties and produced by about 14 bakers.
In 1978, four bakers produced the cookies, and all cookie boxes had the same designs depicting scenes of Girl Scouts hiking and canoeing. In 1979, the brand-new Girl Scout logo appeared on the cookie boxes.
Choices during the 1970s included Thin Mints, Peanut Butter Sandwich/Do-si-dos®, and Shortbread/Trefoils®, and four additional flavors.
In the 1990s, three licensed bakers supplied 8 varieties of cookies, and in the 2000s, the bakers were reduced to two. The youngest Girl Scout Daisies were also allowed to help market the cookies.
Today the Scouts are offering the famous treats at malls, door-to-door in their neighborhoods, at sporting events, and even over social media and online. Families and troop parents help the girls with transport and coordination. Sales are brisk and the money raised helps these girls enjoy educational and fun activities for memories that will last a lifetime.
To learn more about local Girl Scout Troop 1805, visit them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/girlscouttroop1805/.
Diane Sieker can be reached by email at dsieker@reedermedia.com.
