2015 Girl Scout Cookie season kicks off
Sale dates February 13 – March 23, 2015

[February 12, 2015]  SPRINGFIELD, IL – Thousands of girls across central Illinois will begin to sell Girl Scout cookies at booths, door-to-door, and for the first time ever, through CoCodirect, the first national digital sales platform that enables any girl age 5-17 to learn 21st-century skills while building her cookie business.

"The Girl Scout Cookie Program is the largest, most successful girl-led business in the world, and its power to teach girls business and financial skills that will serve them throughout their lives is unrivaled," said Pam Kovacevich, CEO of Girl Scouts of Central Illinois. "This year, thousands of Girl Scouts throughout the region will participate in the largest financial literacy program in the world by building their own cookie businesses, and every year, our young cookie entrepreneurs reinvest that money into troop activities and projects that make their communities and our world a better place. There is no other program that allows girls to gain such valuable experience and understanding of how they can transform their world, all while having fun and engaging in the excitement of the cookie season."

Girl Scouts will be selling cookies from February 13 through March 23. This year’s National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend will be held February 27 through March 1, and will mark the 98th year of Girl Scouts selling cookies and learning the basic skills and acumen they need to be leaders in business and sales, manage their personal and family finances, and gain self-sufficiency and confidence handling money.

A new tasty treat will debut this cookie season. For the first time in Girl Scout history, gluten-free cookies will be available. Trios, made with real peanut butter, chocolate chips, and whole-grain oats, is gluten-free and will be offered. The newcomer joins legendary classics of Thin Mints, Shortbread, Caramel deLites, Lemonades, Peanut Butter Patties, Thanks-A-Lots, Peanut Butter Sandwiches, and Cranberry Citrus Crisps.

Find sales locations online: Visit www.girlscout cookies.org  to find booth sales near you. Never miss a sale with the free Cookie Finder application, free for your iOS or Android phone or mobile device, which lists the times, dates, and locations of all cookie booth sales in the country.

Order by phone: Call the Girl Scout Cookie Connection Hotline toll-free at 1-800-640-8671, and our Cookie Agents will facilitate a connection to a troop in the nearby area.

[Kate Peters, Girls Scouts of Central Illinois]

About Girl Scouts:  We're 2.8 million strong—2 million girls and 800,000 adults who believe girls can change the world. It began over 100 years ago with one woman, Girl Scouts' founder Juliette Gordon "Daisy" Low, who believed in the power of every girl. She organized the first Girl Scout troop on March 12, 1912, in Savannah, Georgia, and every year since, we've made her vision a reality, helping girls discover their strengths, passions, and talents. Today, as yesterday, we continue the Girl Scout mission of building girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place. We're the preeminent leadership development organization for girls. And with programs for girls from coast to coast and across the globe, Girl Scouts offers every girl a chance to do something amazing. To volunteer, reconnect, donate, or join, visit www.girlscouts.org.  Locally, Girl Scouts of Central Illinois serves over 20,000 girls and 4,000 adult members annually in 38 counties throughout central Illinois. For more information, visit www.getyourgirlpower.org.