Barnhart Balfour Beatty, San Diego’s largest construction firm, donated 1,200 boxes of Girl Scout cookies to deployed U.S. military troops through the Girl Scouts’ Operation Thin Mint® program. The company purchased the cookies from 6th-grader Madison Perno of Chula Vista.
“Madison’s organized and professional presentation to our company was filled with facts and figures about Operation Thin Mint as well as photos of the troops,” said Eric Stenman, president of Barnhart Balfour Beatty. “As a strong supporter of the military, Madison impressed me with her passion for Operation Thin Mint, which sends our troops abroad ‘a taste of home and a note to show we care.’ We are proud to support her efforts.”
For three years, Perno has been Girl Scouts, San Diego-Imperial Council’s top cookie seller. She was also California’s top cookie seller in 2010. Perno was recognized at the recent Operation Thin Mint Sendoff Celebration at the USS Midway Museum. More than 2,300 Girl Scouts, family members, cookie customers and VIPs attended the event.
Stenman and the other guests watched Perno, Megan Mattson of Carlsbad, Roni Nelson of Rancho Santa Fe, Michaella Norby of Poway, Caroline Sanborn of Carmel Valley and Sabrina Keller of Escondido arrive by helicopter at the Sendoff. They earned the ride by selling 2,010 or more boxes of cookies in 2010.
Deployed troops will receive a total of 147,000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies this year. Since Girl Scouts, San Diego-Imperial Council began Operation Thin Mint in 2002, local cookie customers have donated more than 1.6 million boxes of cookies to service men and women far from home.
Girl Scout cookie proceeds fund troop community service projects and activities, as well as supporting programs, camps, volunteer training and the financial assistance that keeps Girl Scouting available and affordable for more than 30,000 local girls. |
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California’s top Girl Scout cookie seller Madison Perno poses with Rear Admiral William D. French, Commander, Navy Region Southwest, and Barnhart Balfour Beatty President Eric Stenman at the Sendoff Celebration at the USS Midway Museum.
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