Buy cookies from this troop of Girl Scouts in the New York City shelter system
It's Girl Scout cookie season once again, and ordering your Thin Mints through New York City's Troop 6000 could help you fulfill your cravings while supporting a good cause.
Troop 6000 isn't an ordinary group of Girl Scouts. This program was designed specifically to cater to girls who are part of the New York City shelter system.
The shelter system is a program that provides temporary housing to families while they work to transition into permanent housing and become stable financially. The average stay in the system is 18 months, according to the city.
Because of the this, Troop 6000 looks to give the girls in their program consistency and community. Each week, the Girl Scouts in Troop 6000 meet at 20 different shelters across the city where trained troop leaders aim to mentor and empower the girls.
The Girl Scouts in Troop 6000 can earn badges for things such as science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, environmental protection and community service. They take field trips, visit workplaces and even go to Girl Scout camp.
Also, like millions of Girl Scouts around the world, the girls sell the organization's famous cookies each year. Troop 6000's cookie sales will be exclusively online in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"All of us at Girl Scouts of Greater New York are blown away by the recent outpouring of support for Troop 6000 in the form of Girl Scout Cookie purchases, and we are incredibly thankful that so many have felt moved to help us sustain and grow our effort to serve girls living in New York City family shelters," Heidi Schmidt, director of Girl Scouts of Greater New York's Troop 6000, said in a statement.
All of the money from their sales go toward their troop to finance uniforms, field trips and badge activities.
"All of the proceeds will help us bring Girl Scout programming to the hundreds of girls of Troop 6000, creating unique opportunities for them to build confidence, develop leadership skills, and be part of a supportive community of sister Girl Scouts," Schmidt added.
Troop 6000 also helps the girls once they leave the shelter system. Their Transitional Programming Initiative, started in 2018, ensures that the girls introduced to Girl Scouts through this program will have the financial support to have access to Girl Scout troops in their new community.
You can buy cookies from Troop 6000 on the Girl Scouts of NYC website.
You can learn more about Troop 6000 here and how to support Girl Scout troops in your area here.
