Brownie-Girl Scout Troop 350 wrote personal messages to send along with cookies to Marines in Iraq. The girls will be receiving photos back from the soldiers who get the goodies. Scouts shown from right to left are: Beth Morgan, Celica Cook, Madeline Hardiman, Kara Felgar, Samantha Orth, Candra Barringer and Bailey Emme. Photo by Ken Koerner

By Ken Koerner
Register Staff

3-8-2008

Though half a world away, some U.S. Marines stationed in Iraq are close to the hearts of a local Girl Scout troop in Bishop.

As dependable as the arrival of the four seasons, every year also ushers along the ever-popular “Girl Scout cookie” season – and chances are good that anyone with a daughter, granddaughter, niece or even a neighbor or co-worker with a Girl Scout in the family has already placed an order for those ubiquitous treats.
This “cookie season,” thanks to Brownie-Girl Scout Troop 350, some deserving Marines too far from home to place their own order will still get to enjoy that welcome taste.
“Being a Girl Scout is about being a part of a sisterhood and about having a desire and a willingness to help your community,” Troop 350 Leader Diana Murphy said. “This is another one of the ways our girls in this troop are learning about – and experiencing first-hand – just what that means.”
For one particular member of Troop 350, this “cookie-airlift” is very personal; a factor that’s also helping to ensure the goodies will not only reach their intended destination without delay, but that she and her scout-sisters will see the smiles their special delivery are certain to put on the faces of even the most battle-hardened Marine.
“My uncle Ben is a Marine and he’s in Iraq,” 9-year-old Girl Scout Kara Felgar said, “and he told my mom (Lili Felgar) that we could send the cookies to him and he’d pass them out to other Marines.” Not only has “Uncle Ben” assured his niece that he’d distribute the cookies, he’s also promised to take photographs of the other Marines that receive them to send back to the girls.

Bishop-based, Brownie-Girl Scout Troop 350 is gathering more than 40 books of cookies to send to Marines stationed in Iraq. Troop 350 girls regularly participate in community service as part of fulfilling the scouting tradition. Photo by Ken Koerner

Plus, it won’t just be cookies that Kara’s uncle, Gunnery Sergeant Benjamin Ary, will receive; the girls are also sending personal messages along with their boxes of treats.
Ary, a career Marine serving his third tour in Iraq, calls Camp Pendleton home-base
Brownie-Girl Scout Troop 350 has its home-base on West Line Street, which is where the girls gathered to pack up the boxes and write and draw their notes. In all, more than 40 boxes of cookies are going in this shipment to Iraq.
“Operation Swift Cookies” was launched at 1600 hours on Wednesday, March 5. The girls might have sprung into action earlier, like at say “o-eight-hundred hours,” but they had to wait until school was over for the day. In all, 13 members of the scout troop were present, spending the majority of their time carefully crafting those colorful and heartfelt messages to send along, too.
This isn’t the first time Troop 350 has provided support for our troops. In November, 2007 the Girl Scouts also participated in gathering items to send to soldiers stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan. In that instance, the girls were given a list of items that the Bishop Veterans of Foreign Wars knew would be appreciated by G.I.s. That shipment contained things like trail mix, beef jerky, blankets and even bars of soap – and a dozen or so boxes of cookies, of course. The scouts also sent notes along to the “unknown soldiers” that would be receiving their gifts.
Troop 350, which meets every other Wednesday afternoon in the Girl Scout Building in Bishop, is regularly active with reaching out to others. The past couple of Valentine’s Days have seen the girls create and deliver valentine cards to residents at the Bishop Care Center. At Christmas, the scouts made tree ornaments out of Play-doh and delivered them to residents at the Sterling Heights retirement community – and they stuck around to sing carols for the seniors, too.
This spring the girls will be involved with planting flowers in front of the U.S. Post Office in Bishop (troop leaders and other parents have already helped to prepare the flower boxes that will be used).
Another big event on the horizon for Troop 350 will be hosting a booth at the Choo-Choo Swap Meet. Donated items will be offered for sale as part of a fundraiser by the girls to enable them to go to Sea World in June, where rumor has it they’ll “get to sleep with the baby whales.” (One presumes this will not require holding one’s breath for the night?!)
Clearly, a tradition of service to community is something the Girl Scouts hold very much in common with the men and women in harm’s way that will be receiving their latest, thoughtful gift.
For those that may be interested, there is a box that can be checked on the Girl Scout cookie order form that indicates “For a cause.” A number of the boxes of cookies now being sent were purchased using this method. Something worth keeping in mind during Girl Scout cookie season. You don’t have to ingest those extra calories to derive a lot of satisfaction with a delicious box of your favorite variety of cookie. Troop 350 will be happy to help pass your generosity along.