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SALT LAKE CITY — There's perhaps no better way to beat the winter blues than to indulge in your favorite Girl Scout cookies, and this year, your splurge can help a cause that is extra sweet.
Not even a pandemic can stop the girls in New York City's Troop 6000 from working on their badges, selling cookies and supporting one another. These girls understand the importance of a support system in a unique way, given that every member of this special troop is experiencing homelessness.
Troop 6000 was founded back in 2017 by a single mother of five who, after losing her home, found herself living in one of New York's shelters, according to TODAY. Of the nearly 70,000 people living in the city's shelter system, at least 12,000 are girls under the age of 18, according to Troop 6000's website.
"Every girl deserves to be a leader. She deserves to get that courage, confidence and character to go out there and make the world a better place," Girl Scouts of Greater New York CEO Meredith Maskara told Now This back in 2018. "Whether you have a home or not is not important to us."
Before the coronavirus pandemic, troop members would gather with their specially trained leaders and community volunteers to work on earning badges in subjects like civic engagement, STEM, community service and financial literacy.
In the wake of COVID-19, the troop's weekly meetings went virtual. The virtual meetings are designed to help the girls, their families and troop leaders "feel less alone and more hopeful," according to the Troop 6000 website.
"During this time of isolation and instability, Troop 6000 provides a place for the girls to socialize and connect, have fun, deepen relationships with each other and their troop leaders, and bolster their resiliency," it reads.
This year, you don't have to leave the comfort of your own couch to stock up on Thin Mints, Samoas and Tagalongs. Troop 6000 is selling cookies exclusively online due to the pandemic, which means your purchases will go directly to girls and leaders who could really use the support.
A Jan. 28 tweet encouraging support for Troop 6000's online cookie sales quickly went viral — garnering nearly 40,000 retweets and 60,000 likes in just one week.
"Did I just tear up a little reading this tweet? Maybe. Did I also just buy girl scouts cookies I should not eat? Absolutely," wrote one Twitter user.
"I don't even really eat cookies but I'm in for a gift box of regret (only calorically)," wrote another. "Hope these young ladies prosper in their future endeavors!"
Troop 6000's director, Heidi Schmidt, told Good Morning America they've been blown away by the support they've received for the cookie program so far.
"All of the proceeds will help us bring Girl Scout programming to the hundreds of girls of Troop 6000, creating unique opportunities for them to build confidence, develop leadership skills, and be part of a supportive community of sister Girl Scouts," she said.
To purchase cookies through Troop 6000, click here.
If you'd like to purchase cookies through a troop near you, visit gsutah.org.