Four years ago, the Kucherhan sisters’ father, a member of the Canadian Armed Forces, was deployed to Afghanistan. The girls missed him so much that they sent him parcels. Now, a little older, the two are going door-to-door in their hometown of Kanata, Ont., selling Girl Guide cookies to ship to Canadian troops deployed overseas.
“My dad had been deployed overseas and he always liked getting goodies from home,” 10-year-old Sienna Kucherhan told CTV Ottawa. “So, I thought it would be nice if I gave some cookies to the deployed military members.”
The sisters’ “Can’t Eat ‘Em, Treat ‘Em” campaign follows the lead of Girl Scouts troops from the U.S. So far, the Kucherhans have sold about 120 boxes of cookies since they launched their campaign at the beginning of April. They aim to sell another 80 boxes before sending the cookies overseas next month.
“It makes me feel happy that the deployed military members have a little bit of home,” six-year-old Kiera Kucherhan said.
Their girls’ father, Major Daniel Kucherhan, knows firsthand how such a simple gesture can make a difference.
“Being away seven months in Afghanistan, this is going to really bring people home,” he said.
The girls’ mother, Shari Kucherhan, agrees.
“Anyone who’s been deployed knows how much this means, to just get something from home and know that somebody is thinking of you,” she said.
The response to the campaign has been overwhelmingly positive, the family says, and the girls hope their hard work will bring smiles to soldiers’ faces and lead to an expanded campaign in the future.
“I hope that it can spread across the country so that more deployed military members can have some cookies,” Sienna said.
If you’d like to help the girls out with their mission, send an email to welovegirlguidecookies@gmail.com.
With a report from CTV Ottawa’s Annie Bergeron-Oliver
