In 2014, a story about a Girl Scout setting up shop outside of a pot dispensary went viral. 13-year old Danielle Lei sold 117 boxes of cookies in just two hours outside of “The Green Cross” in San Francisco. The internet saw it as a perfect match.
The regional Girl Scout council even backed Lei’s actions. Dana Allen, Director of Marketing and Communications for the Girl Scouts of Northern California told Mashable in 2014:
“‘Girls are selling cookies, and they and their parents pick out places where they can make good sales.The mom decided this was a place she was comfortable with her daughter being at. […] We’re not telling people where they can and can’t go if it’s a legitimate business.”
Now Lei’s Girl Scout troop is back in the news after making a wager with another San Fran dispensary. The troop challenged “The Apothecarium” to solicit donations for the Kindergarten to College charity program. The loser would have to make fresh-baked cookies for the winner.
Lei’s mom and Troop Mother Carol has used the work with dispensaries as an opportunity to teach her children the difference between medical marijuana and recreational use, all while making a positive impact in their community. Carol told KPIX 5,
“It was a great experience for me to bring my girls in front of a dispensary and have that conversation about drugs and people may be different and have certain needs.”
The Apothecarium also saw the public relations upside of working with Girl Scouts. Eliot Dobris, spokesperson for the dispensary said,
“It’s a strong demonstration that dispensaries are safe places.”
As far as the bet goes, the Girl Scouts won. Don’t worry though, Dobis said of the cookies he owes the Girl Scouts,
“[o]bviously, they will be kid-friendly cookies.”
