OT:What to do with Girl Scout Cookie Revenue?

[icebaby]

Hello Fellow DisBoard Members,

I figured some of you would have brownie/girl scouts in your families, and was wondering what suggestions you have for our Brownie troop of 10 2nd grade girls to do with their revenue from the cookie sales they generated. After giving a portion of it to a charity they vote on, saving about $150-200 towards for nexts year's activities, they will be left with about $400-500 left. Last year the troop went to Build-a-Bear for a party, any other ideas ?

 

[kimmikayb]

Hi Junior GS leader here. We have done lots of things with our money. Like you we take a portion and use it for a community service. This year we are sending packages to Iraq. This year for our "fun" activity we are going to our local dinner/theater to see Grease. In the past we have gone to our local amusement park, stayed in a local hotel with an indoor waterpark and troop camping. It depends on your girls likes/dislikes and what you have available. We'd love to take a trip to Georgia to see Juilette Lows home.

 

[pyrxtc]

we do a trip to a local theme park and it buys supplies for that year and the next years meetings. I don't know how much revenue we generate but it all goes back to the GS's.

 

[McKelly]

Subscribing to this too, I am 1st grade Brownie leader and can always use some ideas!! We are using some for charity, a trip to the gymnastics center, camping and a pool party at an aquatic center. Thinking about skating as well, this would help complete the Sports and Games Try-It. Some other ideas the girls wanted to do was children's museum, zoo, and horseback-riding.

 

[Jenn]

We let the girls vote on a field trip and they chose an overnight sleep over at a local children's science museum. They had a ball!

 

[snowwite]

I let my girls vote and we ended up going to local theme park at the end of the year and also buying pumpkins to decorate and enter into local agricultural fair for which they earned ribbons.We got materials and made a flag and marched in local Memorial Day parade and left some in bank.In fact when DD decided she didnt want to continue we had about 100. left that we gave to local council along with leftover flag and craft supplies to redistribute.
I bet your troop will have some great ideas too!

 

[TinkInPink]

We have used the money for camping trips and for Horseback riding followed by dinner out. This is a popular choice. One year when they were younger they went to the local beauty school got special do's and their nails done and then went out to a special dinner ( not that fancy but they were dressed up with hair done and it was an italian sit down and they made a fuss over them so they thought it was fancy) One troop I know saved theirs and used it for a special trip out of state - took them a couple of years. WE usually offer to pay the Girl Scout annual dues for everyone returning out of ours also.

 

[malibuconlee]

When I was a girl scout we got to take our extra money from sales and the whole troop went to the mall to eat pizza and see a movie. We mus thave been going thru a growing spurt because I remember two of us eating almost a whole large pizza by ourselves. Then we got to watch a movie at the theater. Want to hear me show my age? We saw The Secret of My Success.

I like the idea of covering dues for the next year for all the girls.

 

[pirateofthecarolinas]

Our troop is saving for a trip to Savannah to see the birthplace of Juliette Low this fall. My troop went when I was a little girl.

Lori

 

[new_mouser]

As a former Brownie and Girl Scout, I vote for the camping trip. Those were some of the best memories of my childhood. I drool at the mere thought of s'mores.

 

[mrsmom]

My dd is a cadette and they are going white water rafting this summer in west virginia. My dd is 12 and it's a little scary letting her go. But her leader is very protective of the girls. and i might go too.The have done alot of fun things every year.

Kim

 

[new2disney320]

We have a Brownie troop of 23 2nd and 3rd graders combined. Every year we let them vote on what they want to do and its usually spending the weekend at the local theme park it pays for their tickets,food,hotel, and a litle spending money. Then whats left goes to pay their dues and registration for the next year,try its and patches they earn, and usually a few other outtings camping or sleepovers and like this week we're going to Ted E Bear factory to earn their sewing try it and also get a bear out of it its coming out of our earned money.

They're actually hoping one day to save enough of it up to go to Disney World when they get a bit older.

carrie

 

[pweyl36]

MY DDS GROUP IS GOING TO WASHINGTON DC,LAST YEAR THEY WENT TO NYC TO SEE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST ON BROADWAY.THAT TRIP WAS AMAZING.THERE TROOP LEADER IS THINKING ABOUT SWISSTERLAND IN A FEW YEARS.(NOW THATS ALOT OF COOKIES )

 

[pigletof4]

One of the troops in my local council saved their fall product and cookie product money for about 6 years and went on a Disney Cruise. When there were activites, they paid for them out of their own pockets instead of the troop account. They started saving when they were 1st or 2nd year brownies.

 

[CarolA]

A few suggestions.

One. Give the girls several options and let them vote. I found that breaking the price of the event into boxes of cookies helped them more fully understand the meaning of the prices.

Two. Save some of it. They sell more cookies as Brownies then they do as Juniors. If you think you and at least most of them will hang around, the stuff they want to do gets more expensive. We were saving for a trip to Savannah (the troop is still saving, I just moved)

Three. PROGRESSION. Open that Safety Wise and read the stuff on troop travel and progression. (In other words, the 2nd Graders do not get to do Disney unless they live in the area of the park!)


For the older girls.... if you ever get a chance. Our Chalet in Switzerland is AMAZING!!! Save up and go! (High School!)

 

[Alexsma]

As a former girl scout and current cub scout leader. I vote for camping, isn't that what scouts is all about anyways? We allways went to a camp our council had for a three night activity camp. Lot of things to do swimming, cannoeing and hiking. Best of all cooking our own food over the fire. Also another fave was a lock in at a science center. THey did these just for the scouts lots of fun and planned activites. Check with someother leaders in your area for ideas. Suggest things to the girls that are new to them. Good luck!!!

 

[TandyR]

As a Daisy Leader a suggestion I would make is find a Daisy troop and help them earn their bridging badge and maybe help them buy giving them some craft supplies. Since Daisies aren't allowed allowed to fundraise every Daisy troop I know of are getting to the end of their funds about this time of year. My troop has a total of $12 our troop account....I have heard of several Brownie troops "adopting" a Daisy troop to help them out a bit.

 

[NotUrsula]

Camping, of course. A Scout troop that doesn't camp is just wrong on *so* many levels.

 

[ADisneyQueen]

This is my 4th year as a leader and my advice is SAVE SOME OF IT. I am amazed at the profit you are getting. Did you have a booth sale? We haven't done that yet. The 1st and 2nd year the girls were really excited about selling the cookies(so were the parents). This year our selling wasn't as good. The families aren't into it, some only sold 25 boxes and the girl that sold to her father's employment(EMT worker w/firestation) is no longer in our troop. I wish I had kept a little more of our profit from last year.

 

[Alexsma]

Yes keep some to start up next year. But at the same time, it isn't the girls who may move ups job to support the program for the younger girls. Let the girls who earned it enjoy it. You could always support a family camp out at a dtate park. Most around here have a group site, each family camps on their own but on saturday nights we always do a pot luck.MMM just getting hungary thinking about all the great food.

Our cub scout pack does this every august all though we don't get the amount of families that I wish we would. But the ones that came have a magical time, last summer there was just 8 families. Just enough to enjoy it without planning a great big program to keep the boys busy.

In may we have a camp out with the boy scout troop and another pack in town. This one is at the scout reservation much larger, I think last may there was something like 45 familes plus the boy scout troop. Great time! Can't wait until this year, the older boy scouts acted as leaders and put on the programs for the cub. Us adults just went along to make sure everything went as planned. Also the boy scout leaders did the cooking for everyone! It was so relaxing!!

Good luck what ever your girls decide.