‘C’ Is For Cookie And Confidence

By Reyna Kaneko
Wednesday - January 27, 2010 Share

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By Reyna Kaneko, Director of Product to Market
Girl Scouts of Hawaii

A Girl Scout Cookie can do a lot. It can teach girls valuable life skills. It can provide opportunities for them to give back to their communities. It can help Hawaii’s girls do great things.

At the age of 5, “Maddie” began treatment for leukemia. She missed a lot of school, and the effects of chemotherapy lowered her self-esteem. While going through treatment she met another girl, “Addie,” who invited Maddie to join her Brownie Troop. Soon Girl Scout meetings became the place for Maddie to be with other girls who accepted her as a friend.

Girl Scouts also became a way for Maddie to give back to her community. Through the Girl Scout Cookie Program, she set and achieved her ambitious goal of becoming one of Hawaii’s top cookie-sellers.

With the proceeds, Maddie’s troop purchased Girl Scout Cookies for kids who, like Maddie, were patients at K a p i o l a n i Women’s and Children’s hospital.

Girl Scouts (from left) Weetonia Dickerson, Katana Jacopec, Codi Malalis and Harmony Pakele of Troop 5006 create a ‘Friendship Circle.’ At their last meeting, the troop decided to donate half of their Girl Scout Cookie proceeds to help victims of the recent earthquake in Haiti

Throughout each school year, about 1,500 girls across the state meet every week to discover their personal best, connect with others in an increasingly diverse world, and take action to solve problems and improve their communities.

Formally introduced to Hawaii in 1917 by Queen Liliuokalani and Florence Lowe, a school teacher from Kamehameha School for Girls, Girl Scouts of Hawaii provides leadership development opportunities for girls - from kindergarten and beyond - who do amazing things with their lives right now.

The Cookie Pre-Sale period is underway through Jan. 29. Cookies arrive in the Islands on March 5. All proceeds raised through the Girl Scout Cookie Program stay in Hawaii to make the Girl Scout Leadership Development Experience available to all of Hawaii’s girls.

To find out more about the Girl Scout Cookie Program, go to http://www.girlscoutshawaii.org, or contact me at 675-5512 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Hawaii charitable organizations may send requests for space in either Proof Positive or the free advertisement below to dchapman@midweek.com.