A couple of nights ago, I was having dinner with a couple of people, when the topic of Girl Scout cookies came up. We all had stories about friends and co-workers who have convinced, cajoled and harrassed us into buying a box or two and eventually someone asked, "where are the actual Girl Scouts who are supposed to be selling the cookies?"As a child, my parents always insisted that if my sister and I were to participate in a fundraising event that included selling things, we had to sell them ourselves. They refused to take cookies and candy into their workplaces and shill for us. We had to trudge around the neighborhood on our own to make our sales. We were both always so jealous of the friends who could simply have their father take the sales sheet into the office and come home that night with the sales quota met.
According to an article on CNN.com, the Girl Scouts of America actually stress that cookie sales should be done by the girls* themselves, however, most people recognize that fundraisers like this one often require a great deal of parental participation.
What's your take on fundraising sales like Girl Scout cookies and school candy sales? Should parents participate, or should the kids be the ones to do the work?
*I would like to note that Scott and I bought two boxes of cookies this year from actual Brownies, who were stationed just outside a local grocery store. However, it was the first time in years that either of us had encountered any real scouts.
