Sweet deal: Local Girl Scouts hope cookie sales help them get to Washington

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Back row, from left: Troop leader Eva Byrne, Natalie Danilos, Erica Byrne and troop leader Dawn Gallo. Front row, from left: Brianna Mooney, Katilyn Myles, Erin Byrne and Jenna Haase.

Updated: March 24, 2012 8:06AM

Year after year, Girl Scouts sell cookies and take part in community service projects.

But those tradition-building activities are getting a big once-in-a-lifetime addition in this, the organization’s 100th year. In June, at least 200,000 girls and adults from around the world are expected to converge on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., for an anniversary celebration that the Girl Scouts are billing as “The World’s Largest Sing-Along.”

That includes girls from Evergreen Park-based Troop 346. Some of them have been involved in scouting since kindergarten, troop leader Eva Byrne said, and troop member Kaitlyn Myles sees the celebration as a big payoff.

“I always imagined us doing something really big as we kept into Girl Scouts,” said Myles, 15, of Chicago. “I’m really excited for the trip. We’re hoping that it goes well. We always make the best out of everything we do.”

The sing-along, dubbed “Girl Scouts Rock the Mall,” is scheduled for June 9. Girl Scouts worldwide are invited, including 3.2 million active members and 50 million alumnae, plus family and friends.

About 85,000 girls from the Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana are interested in making the trip, officials said.

The trip is expected to cost each Girl Scout $600 to $800, which includes the bus ride, hotel, food and sightseeing. The funds raised from cookie sales will help, and some girls are hoping their 2012 sales reach 2,012 boxes, which could pay for their trip in full.

Like others, the Evergreen Park troop will even set up in front of stores to try to sell extra cookies.

Jennifer Fredericks, who helps oversee cookie sales for the Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana, said nine out of 10 people will buy cookies when asked, with an average order of three to five boxes.

While the Troop 346 girls are looking forward to the trip, Natalie Danilos, 15, of Evergreen Park, said the special event isn’t all that makes the organization special.

“Girl Scouts is a place where we do a lot of helping other people, but we have fun at the same time,” she said. “It’s not like your mom made you go do a service project; it is enjoyable. It creates friends that you’ll have for a long time that you might not have otherwise.”

The Oak View Girl Scouts have been selected to serve as grand marshals for the Oak Forest Fleadh family parade on March 10, Oak Forest city officials said in a news release. The parade steps off at 11 a.m. at 157th Street and Cicero Avenue.

“We thought this would be a great way to honor this American institution while showcasing our town’s future leaders,” said Kimberly Malecky-Iles, the Oak Forest-Crestwood Area Chamber of Commerce executive director.

Several troops are expected to walk in the parade, and the girls plan to sell Girl Scout cookies throughout the Fleadh events.

The Orland Park Lions Club is accepting nominations for any current or former Orland Park Girl Scout to be the grand marshal for the Orland Days parade on June 3. Nominations, which should be 100 words or less, can be emailed to Todd Probasco at trprobasco@yahoo.com.