LIFESTYLES
WEEKEND, FEBRUARY 18-19, 2017
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Girls Scouts Lillie Ruiz, 11, Abbi Burleson, 7, Emily Credille, 10, Kayleigh Hearne, 10 and Skyla Parrish, 9, stand with a portion of the Girls Scout cookies they
plan on selling this year. The girls are all members of Troop 51425, which had the highest cookie sales in the region last year.
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
Hundreds of cardboard cases line the walls
and cover the small room’s hard fl oor in the
bottom of Hermiston’s First United Methodist
Church.
The cases, displaying shiny labels of
green, orange or purple, are full of boxes.
And those boxes are full of Girl Scout
cookies.
Girl Scout Troop 51425 of Hermiston aims
to sell at least 4,000 of those boxes, matching
what it did last year. The 10 girls of the troop
join millions nationwide at stands and booths
in the annual push of the cookies.
Troop-mates Abbi Burleson, 7, and Emily
Credille, 10, said the toughest part of the
effort is fi nished — hours of walking neigh-
borhoods to go door-to-door while pulling a
wagon full of cookies. Amber Ruiz-Burleson,
troop leader and mom, said the troop also did
well with pre-sales, so it has a good start on
that 4,000 box goal.
Several members of the troop met
Wednesday afternoon, the countdown to table
sales ticking away. All said Samoas and Thin
Mints are the favorites, and they work a basic
sales pitch to draw customers. “Hello, would
you like to buy some cookies?” about sums
it up.
Kayleigh Hearne, 10, now in her third year,
said customers often ask the troop members
what their favorite cookies are, and that’s a
good way to make a sale. Skyla Parrish, 9,
is in her second year as a Girl Scout and said
each time she sells cookies, she gets a little
less shy.
Abbi in 2016 sold 1,100 boxes, making her
the top local cookie seller. Troop members
said Abbi’s secret to sales success is simple
— she’s adorable.
Amber said there’s no doubt the older the
girls get, the harder they have to work to sell
the cookies. People fi nd it much easier to turn
down a preteen or teen than their cherubic
counterparts.
But this crew doesn’t let rejection get them
down. Kayleigh Hearne, 10, a third year Girl
Scout, said you still say “thank you,” even
when the answer is “no.”
“We have a pretty social group of girls,”
Amber said.
The troop has a sweet memory from last
year’s sales of a truck driver who bought
cases of cookies. Not just boxes, the girls
stressed, but cases. Lots of them. Lillee, the
veteran of the group with four years of Girl
Scouting behind her, never saw anything
like it.
Image from collection of Girl Scouts of the USA. Used by permission
Girl Scout cookies are sold everywhere, 1950s.
Image from collection of Girl Scouts of the USA. Used by permission
Girl Scout Brownies and Intermediates
posing at a Girl Scout cookie display, 1960.
“That astonished me,” she said.
Money from cookie sales stays local, and
troops use the dough for activities, out-of-
town trips and to benefi t the community.
Troop 51425 last year enjoyed the Polar
Express Train Ride on the scenic Mount Hood
Railroad. The troop’s list for an excursion this
year includes the Oregon Coast Aquarium in
Newport, and Silverwood Theme Park near
Athol, Idaho.
But the scouts’ more immediate focus is on
their community project. The troop wants to
raise money to establish a small emergency
pantry in Hermiston. They would stock the
pantry with essentials, the girls said, such
as toothbrushes, toilet paper and gloves.
Amber said they are still working out details,
including the location, but the idea mimics
community bookshelves, where people can
take one book and leave another.
Girl Scout cookie table sales began Friday
morning outside popular customer centers,
such as Walmarts, Safeways and truck stops.
And 2017 marks 100 years of Girl Scouts
selling cookies. The organization’s chapter
of Oregon and southwest Washington will
commemorate the banner year with the intro-
duction of a new cookie, Girl Scout S’mores
cookies.
Like the other batches, those are available
while sales last now through March 12.
———
Contact Phil Wright at pwright@eastore-
gonian.com or 541-966-0833.
Girl Scouts will be
out in force from now
through March 12 sell-
ing the organization’s
famous cookies. The
descriptions of each
are based on informa-
tion from Girl Scouts.
Do-si-dos:
Crunchy oatmeal
sandwich cookies with
creamy peanut butter
fi lling.
Samoas: Crisp
cookies coated in
caramel, sprinkled
with toasted coconut
and striped with dark
chocolaty coating.
Savannah Smiles:
Zesty lemon wedges
with a dusting of pow-
dered sugar.
Tagalongs: Crispy
cookies layered with
peanut butter and
covered with a choco-
laty coating.
Thin Mints: Crisp
peppermint wafers
covered in chocolaty
coating.
Toffee-tastic:
Rich, buttery cookies
with sweet, crunchy
golden toffee bits.
(Girl Scouts is offering
a gluten-free variety in
select markets for as
long as supplies last.)
Trefoils: Simple
but yummy short-
bread cookies.
And new, this
year, Girl Scout
S’mores: Based on
the classic camping
treat, these crunchy
graham sandwich
cookies have a
creamy chocolate and
marshmallowy fi lling.