Girl Scout Cookies
9th Annual
Gift of Caring: Cookies for Soldiers
"Troops to Troops" Campaign
Girl Scout cookies are a great symbol of America. In fact, Girl Scout Cookies continue to be one of the most requested items by Soldiers.
We are collecting donations of Girl Scout Cookies for our military men and women deployed overseas. Show your support for our Soldiers and your local Girl Scouts by purchasing an EXTRA box or two of Cookies. This is a wonderful community service project for our Girl Scouts along with their families, friends, neighbors to support our Soldiers overseas. The Soldiers are in stressful situations, but when they receive a box of cookies from home, it sends a message to the troops that America is thinking of them and their safe return.
GS Cookie Box: You are invited to attach a drawing or personal note on every cookie box. Girl Scout Leaders or adults only may include their personal e-mail address for Soldiers to reply. Thank you for participating in this program.
A Soldier serving in Iraq wrote to us:
“The 988th Military Police Company Headquarters platoon out of Fort Benning, Georgia, would like to Thank You for the Girl Scout Cookies. We have enjoyed getting a Taste of Home. Our platoon enjoys the cookies on our down time after work or for a snack during our long days. When we receive these gifts, we are grateful that people think about us and share with us the pleasures of the simple things, such as Girl Scout Cookies. We appreciate your support. It is a wonderful moral boost when you take care of us The platoon has enjoyed the cookies and we all thank you for all your support.”
Cookies must be received by March 17 in order to be shipped overseas!
Cookies may be mailed to:
OR
Drop-Off or FedEx delivery:
Hugs for SoldiersDuluth First United Methodist Church3208 Duluth Highway 120Duluth, GA 30096 Drop-off Dates and location: Wednesday, March 14 from 4:00-7:00 p.m. and Saturday, March 17 from 9:00 a.m.-noon at the Scout Hut (located behind the church)
Newspaper Articles:
January 7, 2011 by Jan Cohen
www.somethinggoodonceaweek.com
So growing up, I was a Girl Scout and every year, we'd approach everyone else's favorite time of the year - Girl Scout Cookie Time - and we were sent to neighbors' doorsteps, local grocery stores, events, and anywhere else a cute little girl could stand outside (and usually freeze) and ask passerbys to give a small donation for some amazingly delicious treats! Although the regulations, structure and types of cookies have changed, the concept hasn't and the idea of giving back is better than ever.
Now I've never been a huge fan of actually eating Girl Scout Cookies. I think a long time ago I convinced myself I didn't like them and have always just stuck to that principle for fear of going on an extreme cookie binge. This year I am trying extra hard to watch what I am eating and didn't even want the cookies around. As I passed by the girls standing outside of Acme, I still wanted to give back to a cause near and dear to my heart. I approached one of the girls and offered a donation and she explained a new idea for donations.
Basically if you see the cute little faces and feel prompted to purchase, but don't want the temptation staring you in the face, you can give a monetary donation (the cost of a box or two) and the girls will use the money to send cookies to soldiers overseas! They do this through a program called, Hugs for Soldiers, which provides a little bit of home to those who are away. I remember when I was studying abroad and some of the simple pleasures from home were all I needed to help me out when I felt homesick. I can't even image how these soldiers feel and how a Thin Mint or Shortbread cookie might help them feel just a little bit better!
So next time you're thinking about purchasing some Girl Scout cookies, ask the Girl Scout if she participates in the program and if so, throw in an extra $3.50 and send a box to a soldier!
Girl Scouts collecting treats for soldiers
Gwinnett Daily Post
Posted: 7:39 PM Mar 31, 2010
DULUTH---The Duluth Service Units of the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta is collecting cookies this week to send to deployed soldiers.
During the cookie season, Girl Scouts asked community members if they were interested in purchasing a box of cookies and donating it to Operation Taste of Home.
Girl Scout troops dropped off some of the donated boxes Wednesday afternoon at the Duluth First United Methodist Church’s Scout Hut. Donated cookies can also be dropped off from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Scout Hut, located behind the church.
For the project, the Duluth Service Unit partnered with Hugs for Soldiers of Duluth First United Methodist Church, a volunteer organization and ministry dedicated to offering comforts of home to soldiers who are deployed overseas.
Soldiers overseas get taste of home
Gwinnett-Herald.com
by Tana Suggs
April 10, 2009
As the saying goes baseball, hot dogs and apple pie might be considered quintessential to America, but perhaps some might add another treat to that list – Girl Scout cookies.
And for many U. S. troops serving abroad, a box of Girl Scout cookies is a sweet reminder of home.
That’s why Scouts in the Duluth Service Unit of the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta are doing their part to make sure U. S. soldiers stationed around the world get their share of the annual treat through “Operation: Taste of Home.”
They began sending cookies to the soldiers in 2004 through the Hugs for Soldiers Organization.
Angie Doerlich, founder of the organization said the cookies go to troops in places like Afghanistan, Iraq, Germany and Kuwait.
“All the cookies donated today will be boxed up and sent to the soldiers to make sure all the troops get that little touch of home,” said Doerlich.
The soldiers who receive the cookies are part of the Adopt-A-Soldier Program.
Sandy Barber, a service unit director for the Duluth area said the girls are excited to participate in the program because they know they’re doing it for a good cause.
Catherine Dirksen and Jessie Lowe attend Parsons Elementary School and are both members of Troop 1112 taking part in “Operation: Taste of Home.”
Catherine said she is proud to be a part of the mission this year.
“Everyone deserves a treat sometimes, and they really deserve it because they are fighting for our country,” she said.
But selling cookies this year was no piece of cake.
“With the economy right now people don’t want to buy as many cookies as they used to,” she said.
Jessie said people set aside a certain amount to buy cookies and stayed within the budget.
Melissa Coleman attends Chattahoochee Elementary and is a member of Troop 1941. She said she likes the part after selling all the cookies when they receive their patches.
“This year is the super patch,” said Coleman.
She described it as a half diamond with an elephant.
“It’s really cool,” said Coleman.
For information about the Hugs for Soldiers organization, visit their Web site at www.hugsforsoldiers.org.
A COOKIE BREAK -- Service project sends boxes of treats to soldiers
Gwinnett Daily Post
by Jamie Ward, Staff Writer
April 11, 2009
DULUTH - Eight-year-old Melissa Coleman, a three-year Girl Scout member, said it best. When soldiers are off fighting in a war, she said, the last thing they have time to think about is cookies.So with no cookie time for the fighting troops, another set of troops is making sure that when those soldiers do have a free minute the cookies will be there waiting for them.
That's the logic behind the service project program created by the nonprofit Hugs for Soldiers group. It's entitled "Operation: Taste of Home," and by partnering with the Duluth Service Unit of the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, the program gets 550 girls from 57 different girl scout troops to box-up donated boxes of Girl Scout cookies to be sent to American soldiers serving overseas.
This year the effort consisted of collecting and packaging about 2,300 boxes of girl scout cookies.
According to troop leader Pamela Nye, who is also Coleman's mother, the Hugs for Soldiers program was a perfect fit for local girl scouts.
"It seems like participation in this program has been increasing the last few years and the national girl scout office encourages local service projects," Nye said. "And my girls have a stronger connection to it because we sent cookies to my brother in Iraq a few years ago when he was serving there."
Nye's other daughter Sarah, age 6, also participated in the effort.
According to the founder of Hugs for Soldiers, Angie Doerlich, the soldiers serving overseas are often in stressful situations. When they receive a box of cookies from home, it sends a message to the troops that America is thinking of them and their safe return.
Doerlich said the Hugs for Soldiers program is now in its sixth year of operation and she thanked the girl scouts for their continued participation. She also said Girl Scout cookies are consistently one of the most requested items by soldiers serving overseas.
That made sense to Coleman.
"I think everybody in the world likes Thin Mints," she said.
For more information or to donate to Hugs for Soldiers, visit www.hugsforsoldiers.org.
For more information on the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, visit www.girlscoutsgreateratlanta.org.
I
