Embedded Files
What Money Comes In?
What Money Comes In?
Dues
Dues
Dues for our troop are $90 a year for all girls. They are payable in one lump sum or by trimester; Oct, Jan & April. Dues are billed in Trooptrack (TT) by trimester. They can be paid by credit card in TT or to the treasurer by cash or check at any meeting.
Dues cover items like meeting materials, earned badges & journeys, and fun patches. They are meant to cover the day to day costs of being a member in the troop.
*If your family is experiencing financial hardship, please speak with your level leader or the treasurer for assistance.
Troop Hosted Money Earning Events
Troop Hosted Money Earning Events
At this time we do not host any troop hosted money earning events but we are making plans to support our adventure to Savannah summer of 2026!
Fall Product
Fall Product
During 2024-25, GSCM brought back the Girl Scout Product sale for the first time in several years. Of our 40 registered scouts at the time, only four families chose to participate. We are certainly glad they did! They sold over $1200 in product! Earning the troop just over $200 AND a new cookie season incentive of + $0.05 profit per package of cookies sold for this year's sale.
Cookie Sale
Cookie Sale
Did you know for 2024-25 the troop makes $0.95 for each box of cookies sold? That's up from the past two years! It certainly doesn't sound like a lot but it does add up quickly! Each year we set cookie sale goals after we choose our Cookie Adventure during cookie season. Until then our goal is TBD.
Things to keep in mind about cookies & cookie profit during cookie season.
Girls are rewarded individually for their sales and participation through council rewards and troop recognition.
Per National Girl Scout Council, earned cookie money must be used for the troop scouts as a whole, without regard to a scouts participation in cookie sales.
We are a large multilevel troop. Due to the diversity of ages and activities levels our sales, goals, and budget are calculated on a patrol level, then averaged. If a level has leftover funds at the end of the year, they move up with that level. This allows for patrols to save for items like uniforms for bridging, metal awards or patrol travel.
Highlights from our sales through the years.
Highlights from our sales through the years.
2022 - 2023
Base rate: $0.70
+ Spring Renewal $0.08
= $0.78 per package
Goal: 180 packages.
Actual: 187.04 packages
Total Sales: 8604 Packages
3rd Place in our Council
2023 - 2024
Base rate: $0.70
+ no incentives
= $0.70 per package
Goal: 200 packages.
Actual: 190.38 Packages
Total Sales: 7996 Packages
3rd Place in our Council
2024 - 2025
Base rate: $0.82
+ Spring Renewal $0.08
+ Fall Product Sale $0.05
= $0.95 per package
Goal: 200 packages.
Actual: 272.14 Packages
Total Sales: 13,335 Packages
2nd Place in our Council
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why is there a significant jump in the base rate for the 2024-25 year?
A: Cookie prices increased from $5/$6 to $6/$7 a package.
Q:Why do cookie profits vary year to year?
A: Profits vary based on what incentives are offered by our council and which ones the troop qualifies for.
Q: What incentives are available for cookie sales?
A: For 2024-25 there are three incentives available. As follows:
Spring Renewal (+ $0.08) - Requires 60% of current registered scouts to renew their membership during the Spring Renewal campaign (April 1 - June 30) and for the end of year treasurer report to be submitted to council by 6/30
Fall Product (+ $0.05) - Troops participated and sold more than $1000 in the Fall Product Sale.
Opt out for rewards (+ $0.05) - Troops with more than half of their scouts Junior and older can choose to opt out of physical rewards for the cookie sale. (This incentive is not applicable to our troop as we are 60% younger girls.)
Where Does The Money Go?
Where Does The Money Go?
Badges & Fun Patches
Badges & Fun Patches
Our largest troop budgeted expense is recognition for the girls budgeted at $66-$73 per girl depending on level. Recognitions are earned badges, journey awards, award pins, and fun patches.
Badges - Badges & the Daisy Flower are worked on at meetings and events throughout the year. Most badges will take 1-3 meetings to cover. Patrols plan to earn 7-10 of these per year. *The Daisy flower is covered every year beginning in January until it's complete. Other badge work is woven into the curriculum as well to keep everyone engaged.
Journey - A journey is a more in depth badge work topic that our troop likes to cover at a campout or a special event. There are seven national journeys for each level. The troop offers the opportunity to complete at least three each year. Once a scout earns three journeys she will qualify for the summit pin.
Pins - There are many pins scouts can earn. The family cookie pin, Summit, My Promise My Faith, Safety and annual star to name a few.
Fun Patch - These are patches earned by attending events & activities. They are intended to remind scouts of the fun activities they have participated in.
Recognitions add up very quickly with our active troop. They are awarded at our Courts Of Awards in Oct (Bridging), March (Cookies), & June (End of the year).
Badges - $3.50
Journey - $7-14
Pins - $2 - $5
Fun Patch - $.60 - $2
Meeting Supplies
Meeting Supplies
Our meeting supplies are budgeted at $21-$25 a year which breaks down to $2-$3 per girl per month depending on planned activities in each patrol. A Girl Scouts uses their resources wisely and we look for many ways to reduce costs where we can through donations and reuse.
*Daisies, Brownies & Juniors will notice an increase in this budget item due to the addition of the Pinewood Derby.
Adventuring, equipment & camping consumables are budgeted at $32 - $33 per girl annually. Our troop has 6 camp outs on the calendar this year: Lock in (Nov), Camp Whippoorwill (Winter), Camp Woodlands(Spring), Cookie Adventure (Apr/May), Camp Conowingo (May), & Broad Creek (June, SU51 Encampment)
For troop hosted camp outs, troop funds are budgeted to pay the site rental and program supplies while scouts are charged an event fee to cover food. We typically budget $15 per person for food, the fee you see charged for troop hosted camp outs.
For non troop hosted campouts, troop funds are used to cover items not included in the event fee but still needed for the troop to participate in the event. This year that includes items like breakfast and themed program materials for the encampment.
Adventuring & Equipment
Adventuring & Equipment
Uniforms & Lifetime Membership
Uniforms & Lifetime Membership
Uniforms & Lifetime Membership is a unique budget item as it changes throughout the girls scouting years. From Daisy to bridging Cadette, patrols budget $25 per scout for bridging uniforms. As a rule scouts progress levels every two years with two exceptions: 3 year Daisies & Cadettes. Scouts who join in K4 will remain a Daisy until bridging after 1st grade and Cadettes encompass all of middle school, 6th-8th grade. One of the unique things about our troop is parents only pay for the first uniform when they join the troop. The troop budgets for all bridged uniforms until the scout reaches Cadettes, receiving their tan vest.
Once a patrol has bridged to Cadettes that $25 budget line item changes to saving for Lifetime membership. Each girl will receive a Lifetime membership as they bridge to adult at the end of their Senior year of High School.
*This will need to be reassessed next year due to the increase in membership fees for the 2025-26 year.
Summary
Summary
After we meet our financial obligations, as outlined above, then we focus on funding our cookie adventure. Linked here you will find a detail of each level's budget.
A Girl Scout uses her resources wisely, making every penny earned count!
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse