For over a century, young girls across the U.S. have been selling cookies within their communities, all while learning about leadership and confidence. Known for their signature green vest and sash, decorated with pins, patches and badges, Girl Scouts are typically spotted throughout the months of January and February as they sell and distribute their beloved Samoas and Thin Mints to loyal patrons. 

However, things are looking a lot different this year. WCHS seniors Holly Hebden and Maeve McGuire are two of the 1.7 million Girl Scouts across the United States that have adapted to the current circumstances in order to provide their neighbors with comfort and stability in the form of cookies. 

“I first became a girl scout in Kindergarten, so I have been doing this for 12 or 13 years,” Mcguire said. “This year is for sure different from all of my other years selling cookies.” 

It is important for the Scouts to sell a substantial amount of cookies in order to finance different activities and projects, like camping trips or museum visits, throughout the rest of the year. 

“My troop saves the money and spends it on an end-of-the-year event. Last year we did a cooking class at Sur la Table which was really fun,” Hebden said. “Also, some of our individual sales go towards funding award projects.”

However, with the presence of the novel COVID-19, Girl Scouts all across the country are struggling to meet their sales goals. Most kids, being in online school, are surrounded by thousands of potential customers across the Internet, but have few opportunities to hold events to secure buyers. 

“As little girls we would do cookie booths outside of stores, but we can’t do that right now. That was a huge source of sales for us, so that has made things harder. We would also go door-to-door to find new customers but we aren’t doing that right now,” McGuire said. 

Finding new customers is possibly the biggest challenge for Girl Scouts right now. This has forced the Scouts to think creatively to face this problem head-on. 

“It’s been harder to get the word out about cookie sales. I’ve had to send more emails and reach out to people through text more than I did previous years,” Hebden said. 

Girl Scouts of the USA have devised a plan to tackle this problem. As part of their solution, they have set up a new feature on their current website that is set to take off on Feb. 1. Customers who do not already know a Girl Scout can enter their ZIP code on the Girl Scouts’ website to search for local troops to support. 

Not only are they using their website to help customers locate troops, Girl Scouts have also utilized the Internet as a platform for selling cookies. Once a Scout finds a customer, they will send them a personalized link that leads to an online purchasing site. Customers will then use that link to buy their cookies online themselves. 

“All of my sales have been online this year, which is definitely different because I used to take most of them directly from people. I also will have to deliver cookies to people’s houses rather than at school so it’s also going to take a lot longer,” Hebden said. 

It is important to be patient with Scouts this year while they do their best to serve the WCHS community. They are going the extra mile to make cookie season as normal as possible and are facing struggles of their own. Hebden and McGuire are making a strong effort to remain positive throughout this strange time, and have found comfort in making light of the situation. 

“I try to look on the bright side and remind myself that, while I wish things could be normal, at least I don’t have to stand out in the cold this year,” McGuire said.