Surely, New Mexicans can help a Girl Scout out.
The 109-year-old organization dedicated to helping girls reach their potential ended up in an unusual spot in 2021 — saddled with lots of leftover cookies. The annual fundraising cookie sale flopped compared to previous years — another victim of the coronavirus pandemic. Traditional sales stalled because many troops canceled in-person drives to reduce risk of spreading COVID-19.
Now the national Girl Scouts have 15 million boxes of unsold cookies. Girl Scouts of New Mexico Trails’ CEO Rebecca Latham says the state group has 22,000 boxes left over. That’s despite girls selling online, in drive-thru lines and using contactless delivery.
The surplus matters because cookie sales help teach girls the ins and outs of running a business — finding customers, making the sale, collecting money and delivering the goods. It’s how many little girls learn to be entrepreneurs.
Cookie sales also help fund the business of Girl Scouts, with some 200 million boxes sold each year — that’s $800 million worth of cookies.
Latham, speaking to NPR, said her troops sold some 805,000 boxes of cookies in 2020 but just under 600,000 this year. The shortfall in sales could mean not filling some positions or being unable to invest in infrastructure improvements at camps.
But all is not lost.
In New Mexico, it’s possible to purchase cookies online for donation to Hometown Heroes, people who work to improve their communities. A buyer can choose between donating to food banks, health care workers, police officers, the military, vaccination site volunteers, firefighters, EMTs and educators. More information is available by visiting nmgirlscouts.org and clicking “cookies.”
New Mexico Trails also sold cookies in person at a New Mexico United soccer game, unloading more of the boxes. That’s even better than a table in front of Walmart.
As with so much during the pandemic, the drop in cookie sales highlighted a few unsettling trends for Girl Scouts. According to NPR, local leaders think the national scouting organization should have better predicted the slower sales — not because of the pandemic, but because membership is falling.
Some 1.7 million girls were enrolled in Girl Scouts in 2019. That’s down 30 percent from 2009. Since cookie sales are girl-powered, sales likely would be down, pandemic or no pandemic.
Local troop leaders are hoping national officials can nail the numbers better in future years. Some troops also are concerned about the type of palm oil used in cookies; it’s linked to child labor, as reported by the Associated Press. In best Girl Scout style, girls in New Jersey held a protest. National scout leaders are going to work with the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil to ensure farmers are meeting those standards.
Still, thousands of girls in New Mexico love being a Girl Scout. It would be a shame if they missed out in any way because cookie sales had dropped.
To prevent that from happening, buy a few cookies or make a donation. Help a Girl Scout out.
June 21, 2021 at 10:00AM
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Help a Girl Scout by buying cookies | Editorials | santafenewmexican.com - Santa Fe New Mexican
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