Submitted
ATWOOD–For the second year in a row, a Girl Scout alumna has purchased Girl Scout Cookies from every Girl Scout in Atwood, the county seat of Rawlins County in northwest Kansas.
Judy Sweeney, who now lives in Jacksonville, Florida, cherishes her memories as a Girl Scout in Atwood, so she wanted to do something to help both Girl Scouts and her hometown. She recently purchased 64 packages of Girl Scout Cookies – two from each of the 32 Atwood Girl Scouts participating in Girl Scouts of Kansas Heartland’s Cookie Program this year.
“I’m very proud of my hometown. It’s a small, growing community that keeps going in Scouting, and the people there work together to keep the community alive,” Sweeney said. “This is just one way I could come back and say ‘thank you’ for the strength I got in my circle of life.”
Growing up in Atwood, Sweeney earned the Curved Bar as a Girl Scout Cadette – the highest level of Girl Scouting there at the time.
“One of my best memories of the Girl Scout House in Atwood was learning square-dancing,” she recalled. “My first camping experience on the rich, Kansas soil – that’s a very vivid memory.”
She credits Girl Scouts for helping her transition from her hometown of about 1,200 people in northwestern Kansas to the big city of Baltimore, Maryland, where she moved with her husband in 1965. Sweeney said she discovered “the need was the same in Baltimore: helping girls develop confidence and leadership skills.” She started volunteering for Girl Scouts and then worked for the Girl Scout council in Baltimore, eventually becoming director of Girl Scout programming for the entire council.
Sweeney said she’s proud to give back to the town and the organization that mean so much to her. Some of the Girl Scout Cookies that Sweeney purchased will be donated to the Atwood Senior Citizens Center and the Atwood Bridge Club, according to Vicky Chessmore, a Girl Scout troop leader and Cookie Manager for the Girl Scout troops in Atwood.
“It’s helping the girls reach their goals, and it’s also helping the community,” Chessmore said of Sweeney’s cookie purchase. “I think it’s awesome that we have alumni who come and support our girls in Rawlins County. She’s spreading the joy, and we thank her very much.”
The 2016 Girl Scout Cookie Sale ends March 20, so there is still time to help Kansas Girl Scouts reach their goals. All proceeds from the Girl Scout Cookie Sale – every penny after paying the baker – stay in Kansas to support local girls, helping pay for Girl Scout troop activities, camp, uniforms, financial aid, and community service projects across the state. To find Girl Scout Cookies, enter your zip code at girlscoutcookies.org or call the Cookie Hotline at 888-686-MINT (6468) for assistance connecting with local Girl Scouts.