Fall Product Program

During 2024-25, GSCM brought back the Girl Scout Fall Product Program 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. 

For the 2025-26 year, GSCM is offering similar incentives.  

• 1. Up to 15% of total sales

• 2. for troops that sell over $1000 the opportunity to earn an additional $0.05 per package of cookies sold during cookie season.

Let's see if we can get that cookie incentive this year!

Cookie Sale

Did you know for 2025-26 the troop will make $0.90 for each box of cookies sold? That's $0.05 away from what we made last year. We have the opportunity to increase our profit by $0.05 if the troop sells at least $1000 during the Fall Product Program running from Sept - Oct 2025. Can we meet that goal? The next couple months will tell!

While $0.90 - $0.95 profit per box sold does't sound like a lot, it does add up quickly! Each year we use cookie sales to offset troop expenses and take an exciting Cookie Adventure. The cookie goal is TBD based on our chosen Cookie Adventure. 

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.

Adventuring, equipment & camping consumables are budgeted at $32 - $33 per girl annually. Our troop aims for 6 camp outs a year. This year we have: 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.

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 if there is an adjustment to the Lifetime membership fee. While annual membership fees have increased, Lifetime has not increased yet. This will likely be voted on at the 2026 National Convention in DC.