Girl Scout cookie season begins
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Whether you like Thin Mints, Samoas, Do-si-Dos or any of the six other Girl Scout cookie flavors, one thing is for sure: everyone has their favorite, including people who work for the Girl Scouts, like Emily Ruffing, the public relations and marketing coordinator for the Girl Scouts of Western Pennsylvania.
"I'm a Thin Mint girl," said Ruffing. "So, I am super excited that they're back."
The Girl Scouts have been selling cookies since 1917 and today, just as it was then, the money that they take in stays local and it goes to help pay for things like troop activities, travel and summer camp and they even use proceeds from cookie sales to donate to local causes.
But the Girl Scouts also use this program to learn some incredible life skills.
"The girls are getting leadership skills in decision making, money management, goal setting, people skills, business ethics," Ruffing said. "They are really gaining these leadership skills that will help them succeed in life and it is just such a wonderful program. It's all about the girls, all about how they want to run their cookie sales."
And for cookie sales, there needs to be cookie orders, so that's what you'll be seeing the next few weeks -- members of troops going door to door in certain neighborhoods and order forms being put out at offices and workplaces. Then you will start to see deliveries and after that, troops will be setting up booths at places like the local grocery store for the direct sales.
If you are wondering what the top-selling cookies are in the U.S., the top three are Thin Mints, Tagalongs and Samoas.
But even if you don't want to buy cookies for yourself, the Girl Scouts have an amazing program where you can buy for others.
"Operation: Sweet Appreciation is our council's cookie donation program," said Ruffing. "That's where we donate cookies to the U.S. military and veterans and actually, expanding this year, it's going to local law enforcement and fire stations as well. So, if you don't want cookies for yourself, that's still a great opportunity to support our community and support your local Girl Scouts."
There are many ways you can get your Girl Scout cookies this year. But right now, the best way is to contact a Girl Scout near you. And you want to get them now, because come March, when the program ends, you're going to have to wait a whole other year. If you want to find out more about buying Girl Scout cookies, click here. For Operation Sweet Appreciation, click here.