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Girl Scouts are stuck on Dick Stein

KPLU's Midday Jazz Host Dick Stein is one smart cookie. And his ideas aren’t half-baked, either.  

Stein was honored today by the Girl Scouts of Western Washington on the Pacific Lutheran University campus for coming up with a good idea that really stuck.

Like thousands of other Western Washington residents, Stein buys Girl Scout Cookies every year. 

“But there’s just one problem,” he says.  “I always buy a carton the very first day I encounter the kids outside the supermarket.  Next trip, I might even buy another. But that’s it. I can only buy so many. Then because I am a complete softie, I feel terrible turning them down on subsequent market trips. So I made a suggestion to the Girl Scouts of Western Washington: why not offer a big ‘I Bought Girl Scout Cookies’ button?”

The Girl Scouts listened.  Stefanie Ellis, Girl Scouts of Western Washington’s Public Relations Manager says the organization loved the idea, and this year they made it happen by distributing 5,000 “I Bought Girl Scout Cookies” stickers to troops across Western Washington.

The Girl Scouts publicly recognized Stein for his idea and presented him with a certificate, some of the stickers he inspired, and boxes of lemony Savannah Smiles--his favorite Girl Scout Cookies.  There were Girl Scout troops in attendance, games, prizes and Girl Scouts dressed in cookie costumes giving out free samples of Girl Scout Cookies.

“We want girls to change the world with their ideas, big and small," says Ellis. "It’s key to the Girl Scout experience.  So when other folks in our community have really great ideas that they ALMOST didn’t tell anyone about, we think it’s important to shout, ‘Hey, your idea matters. Look what happened!’ So that’s what we’re doing with Dick Stein’s idea.

“We want to thank him for illustrating the very principles so dear to us as Girl Scouts: every idea matters.  Don’t be afraid to ask, suggest or dream.  Your idea may end up becoming a TV show, a cure for a disease, a new type of technology or a sticker thousands of people will be wearing.  The possibilities are endless!”