Op Ed: Why My Kids will NOT Be Door To Door Salesmen
By: Amy Jeanroy
Published: March 23, 2012

After reading a blog about Girl Scout Cookies being sold by the parents instead of the children, I have to concur. 
Let me set up the scenario: 
Cub Scouts in a small town, are asked to sell overpriced garbage to their family, acquaintances and anyone they possibly can, or they (insert ominous tone) Won't have enough money for camp (/ominous tone). Included in the pamphlet of overpriced trinkets and trash, are the prizes. The boys are supposed to check off what prize they are after, so they can tell everyone what their goal is. The problem with this is twofold: 
Kindergartners do not understand that they will gain a mere pittance per item. They will have to sell a Ginormous (yes, this is not a real word) amount of crap, in order to earn enough for that balsam wood plane. You know, the one they break, while they rip open the packaging? And the bike? Fuggettabouttit.
The second part of this problem, is the parents who do exactly what the blog I reference earlier, said: The parents bring in the paper to their factory jobs and have everyone THEY work with, buy stuff. 
If you do not work in a factory, how does your little Cubbie compete with that? Please don't tell me to drive him to more homes, the difference between the door to door sales and the factory sales is not 10 or 20 bucks; it is THOUSANDS of dollars. Ridiculous! How does that teach the kids about hard work paying off? How does that keep them inspired to sell, sell, sell? 
We have 4 boys, and actually left Scouts for this very reason. Instead of the year being about learning the Scout handbook, it was about the fundraisers-so many fundraisers. Then, mom and dad still had to pay for camp!
For two years, we had our boys make a goal of 5 people to sell to. Then we just told the Scoutmaster that we would be happy to pay for anything the little guy needed. No one can possibly want to eat THAT many Scout inscribed Slim Jims.

Comments:
Vickie
March 23, 2012

Our scouts belong to a church sponsored troop.  They don't sell any junk or do "those" kind of fund raisers.  There's nothing more impressive than being an Eagle Scout on an application.  Hope you give scouts another chance- in another troop...