Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio VP of Retail and Product Sales, Elizabeth Locke-Thomas, is very proud of the achievements of all the girls who participated in the Girl Scout cookie program. How did Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio manage to achieve these record-breaking numbers at a time when the country is suffering from an economic downturn? “It’s because our focus is always on the girl,” said Elizabeth Locke Thomas, Vice President of Retail and Product Sales. “It’s about helping girls develop entrepreneurial, business, service and leadership skills that will last a lifetime. Each girl has her own unique sparkle and personality and we encourage her to express that in everything she does.” Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio also offers cumulative incentives to girls at different sales levels. “The foundation of this program is to teach the girls that they can achieve any goal they choose to set for themselves.” Said Locke-Thomas. “We try to come up with incentives that give them the opportunity to do something that they might not normally be able to afford or experience and place them at attainable levels. They can spend a weekend on Catalina Island, receive an iPad or earn “Cookie Dough” that can be applied to things like going to camp or buying their high school class ring. The sense of pride and accomplishment these girls get from earning these things all on their own is absolutely incredible. By the end of the experience, they walk away knowing that they can accomplish anything they set their minds to.”

NORFOLK (March 31, 2011) Girl Scout cookies donated through the Troop to Troop program by the Girl Scouts of Citrus council in Central Florida are loaded onto the Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20). Six-thousand boxes of cookies were donated. Comfort is in Norfolk for final outfitting and personnel embarkation in preparation for Continuing Promise 2011 (CP11), a five-month humanitarian assistance mission to nine countries in the Caribbean, Central America and South America. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eric Tretter/Released)