“Look Out! The Green Wave is Coming!”

By

Gerry Niskern

The wave is full of danger. If you have been trying to lose those extra Christmas pounds, look out. There are Thin Mints, Tagalongs, Samores, and a new cookie this year called something like “Salted Carmel”.

Some of the girls still come door to door, but you will usually find them set up in front of your grocery store or other local businesses. You can even buy the cookies online, but you have to have an app on your phone to order from a specific girl on her phone. Yes, Girl Scouts have Smart phones today!

When I belonged to troupe # 11, here in Phoenix in l942,   I was excited at the prospect of selling cookies door to door. They were plain vanilla with the Girl Scout emblem imprinted on the top. My mother said “Absolutely not! I won’t let you ask our neighbors to buy a box of cookies for 25 cents that they can buy for ten cents at the store.” If nothing else, my mother had her ethics!

Sure you can find less expensive cookies, but why not support the organization that develops girls of courage, confidence and character worldwide?

I was in fifth grade at Jackson School when Girl Scout troop # 11 was formed. The year was l942. The leader’s name was Miss Curlee, the second grade teacher. She was young and pretty when the other teachers all looked to be over 100 to this fifth grader. Our dues were 2 cents per week.

My main Christmas present that year was a Girl Scout uniform. Since I was the only one in our troop with an official uniform, I was allowed to represent Troop 11 on the horse drawn Girl Scout wagon in the annual Rodeo parade along with other girls from other ten troops in the entire Phoenix area. We were standing and it was a bumpy ride.

Among other duties, Scouting in l943 found us helping to direct people and baby sitting while citizens signed up for ration books for shoes, meat and sugar at our school throughout the year on weekends.

There were no cookie sales that year. They were suspended until after the war.

The highlight of the year in 44’, seventh grade, was earning the square dance badge. Our leader said she would let all the boys in 7^th grade know they were welcome to come and learn square dancing along with us. I decided to invite my own date. He came to pick me up on his red Schwin bike and rode me home after the dance. He was  my resident historian when I was writing my column for the Arizona Republic all those years later.

Girl Scouts promise “to help other people at all times” and that you will love their cookies!