Who would ever think those tasty Tagalongs, Thin Mints and Do-Si-Dos that we buy outside the grocery store would help an Eastern Washington University freshman take a significant bite out of her college expenses?
But that’s just what Miranda Reed, long-time Girl Scout and cookie-sales superstar, has done.
Beginning in junior high, Reed parlayed perseverance, commitment and boxes sold into nearly $9,700 toward her EWU education. Nor is money for college the only benefit her scouting success has conferred.
“Girl Scouts has shaped me into the woman I am today. I have learned so many valuable skills that I would have otherwise never been introduced to,” says Reed.
The art of selling those cookies is definitely one of those skills, and Reed has racked up some prolific numbers. In 2017, she sold 5,200 boxes, tops in her council – Girl Scouts of Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho (GSEWNI). Since 7th grade, she has sold 19,368 boxes.
Her success selling cookies has led to multiple scholarships from Girl Scouts of Eastern Washington and North Idaho, and even had the Girl Scouts membership team offer her a part time position promoting membership as an internal recruiter.
“Miranda has proven her commitment to Girl Scouting and we are honored to be able to help her achieve those goals,” says Brian Newberry, GSEWNI chief executive officer.
Reed’s productivity might seem stunning, but perhaps not when you learn that the 2019 alumna of Spokane’s Mead High School alumna graduated with a 3.98 GPA, earned a 1260 SAT score, and is now a marketing major with a minor in economics at EWU. Reed honed her business aptitude by selling all those cookies, and it has helped her start a new venture at EWU.
“I started the EWU debate team in the fall and I would not have had the knowledge to run the club without Girl Scouts. I have had many opportunities in leadership and improving my communication skills,” she says.
Over the years, cookie sales have also funded service-project trips to Central America, where Reed was exposed to different cultures in places like Costa Rica and Panama. Her senior year at Mead, she earned the Gold Award – the highest award a Girl Scout can receive. To collect the Gold, Reed started her own organization, the Financial Planning Foundation, which focuses on educating teenagers important skills such as budgeting.
Developing such life skills, while also building lifelong friendships, is why Reed is ready to write her next chapter at Eastern. She has aged-out of the Girl Scouts and her cookie-selling days are over. But now she plans to mentor the next generation of Girl Scouts; young women who will also, hopefully, attend Eastern with their scholarship earnings from cookie sales.
