Kids to Know: Kinley Whitt

As we celebrate Women’s History Month this month, we wanted to turn the spotlight on the future female changemakers who are already making a big impact in our community, and they’ve had the sweetest gig to make it all possible … selling Girl Scout cookies!

We recently met up with Kinley Whitt of Troop 33228 in Brandon at the Girl Scout Cookie distribution warehouse in Tampa to learn more about the impact the cookie season and being a part of Girl Scouts has had on her life and girls like her. Even her mom, Markie Whitt, who is the troop leader, is chiming in about the life-changing experience.

TBPM: You just filled up your mom’s car with boxes of cookies! Sales must be going pretty well so far!

KW: It’s going really well so far, and we're just getting started. Our pre-sales have been good, and we picked up 5,200 boxes for our troop to get started. This year, my cookie sales goal is 3,000 boxes.

TBPM: This might sound like an unexpected question to ask a sixth grader, but how has the experience of selling Girl Scout cookies helped you grow professionally?

KW: Selling cookies teaches me how to be a good saleswoman, and it helps me practice

manners and business etiquette. I have to keep inventory, count money, track my sales and keep up with repeat customers every year. I deliver cookies, I go door to door and I do booths.

TBPM: Has this experience inspired what you want to do in the future?

KW: I think I might go into sales in the future, but really, I don't know. I want to be like Barbie because she has every job in the world. You can do endless possibilities. Girl Scouts teaches me how to be a good leader, and it gives me new experiences that I wouldn't have if I weren't a Girl Scout.

TBPM: Markie—as her mom and troop leader, what impact have you seen on your daughter?

MW: Girl Scouts has helped her to see all the possibilities because, just last year, she went into the Cadillac dealership and Brandon to sell cookies. And they asked her to please return when she was 16 for their training program because they were so impressed with her cookie sales pitch. Being a part of the media girls [designated group of girls who represent the Girl Scouts with local media], she’s had so much interest in news and maybe becoming a news anchor. She’s been so inspired by all the different things she's been able to do.

TBPM: When people buy Girl Scout cookies, they are helping make you make a pretty big impact right here in Tampa Bay.

KW: The proceeds from the cookies gives us money to do service projects for the community to make the world a better place. We’ve made backpacks and care packages for foster kids, we got a bunch of supplies for a horse rehabilitation program, and, this year, we’ve been doing a different service project each month. In October, we did a trash pickup. In November, we made blessing bags for ECHO, and then in December, we made Christmas cards, and we sang at a nursing home. Last month, we made blankets and rope toys for an animal shelter.

TBPM: What would you tell other girls like you who may be considering joining the Girl Scouts?

KW: It gives you opportunities that only Girl Scouts can give you, and it helps you meet new friends, and a lot of times it's lifelong friends, and it teaches you so much. It teaches you leadership. It teaches you, salesmanship, and so much more.

I think it's changed my life. I think it's made me a kinder, more polite person, and it's made me think more about the community and service projects. It makes me think more about others now than before. And that is special about our community, just even if you have a selfish moment or whatever, like, the people in our troop, we all ground each other and remind each other of what's important.

TBPM: You got creative with your cookie sales with this clear backpack!

KW: I keep a clear backpack full of Girl Scout cookies with me wherever I go. We just went out to breakfast earlier at Metro Diner in Brandon, and we brought the backpack, and we sold a ton of cookies. They were excited.

MW: It’s fun because we build relationships that way, and she loves that because she gets to talk to people everywhere we go, where if we didn't have the cookies, you might not get that same connection with the people. It's a great conversation starter. Yes, we want to sell the cookies, but we love the connection with the people in the community.

TBPM: Kinley, what’s your favorite Girl Scout cookie?

KW: Thin Mints. Because they're minty and chocolatey and delicious, and I love to eat them right out of the freezer.

Originally published in the March 2026 Issue of Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine.