J.R. McAllister Borie, 86, popularized Thin Mint Girl Scout cookie

Services will be held Friday, April 28, for J. R. McAllister Borie, 86, marketing manager for the Burry Division of Quaker Oats Co., which developed and popularized the Thin Mint Girl Scout cookie.

Mr. Borie, formerly of Flourtown, died Sunday, March 19, of dementia at Cathedral Village in Andorra, where he had lived for the last 12 years.

Known as "Mac," Mr. Borie was the ultimate salesman. He was hired in 1962 by Burry and rose to national marketing manager. At that time, Burry Biscuit Corp. of Elizabeth, N.J., was the nation's largest Girl Scout cookie baker. Sensing future profits, Quaker moved to acquire it.

"This was a fast-growing, competitive market with five companies vying to supply 350 Girl Scout Councils with cookies," said his wife, Judith Helder Borie.

Looking for a signature treat to corner the market, Burry started with a chocolate cookie and drenched it in peppermint-flavored chocolate. The Thin Mint was a major seller – and still is.

"The Girl Scouts and their customers loved them," his wife said.

Over time, other companies competed successfully to bake Girl Scout cookies. For Mr. Borie, though, the aura of having been there at the start of the cookie wars never faded. "It was his crowning moment," she said.

Mr. Borie was first married to Jeanne Marie Smith Browning, with whom he had three daughters. The couple divorced in 1979. She died in 2009.

In 1980, Mr. Borie married Judith Helder, then executive director of the Girl Scouts of Greater Philadelphia. The wedding was notable for the throngs of cookie salesmen and Girl Scout officials who attended.

"Mac Borie will do anything to get a sale," the Burry sales force joked. "I'll bet Judy gets a great price on cookies," the Girl Scout directors countered, according to his wife.

Born in Abington, Mr. Borie was reared in Rydal. He graduated from Episcopal Academy and served stateside with the Marine Corps during the Korean War.

After retiring in 1986, he and his wife bought Soffers, a small variety store at 7709 Germantown Ave. in Chestnut Hill. They renamed it Soffers & Borie.

Until 1997, Mr. Borie was behind the counter, selling Uncle Richie's novelty miniature dressed toy mice -- a rage among local children then -- as well as inexpensive jewelry, toys, and greeting cards.

Although he loved the shop's customers, he could not compete with big box stores. After selling the building, he embarked in 1998 on a part-time job as visitor service representative at Morris Arboretum in Chestnut Hill. It was a lightly paid position.

He stood at the front gate, greeting visitors, directing school buses, and joking with those who rode them. He was "a welcoming and familiar personality to Morris Arboretum visitors and a treasured staff colleague," said Robert R. Gutoski, director of education and visitor experience. "He generously shared the joy of life he so easily expressed."

Mr. Borie retired a few years ago due to health issues.

Besides his second wife, he is survived by daughters Martha Wood and Lisa Baccich; seven grandchildren; a sister; and many nieces and nephews. A daughter, Nina Bonneau, died in 1995.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, April 28, at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Bethlehem Pike and Camp Hill Road, Fort Washington. Interment is private.

Donations may be made to Morris Arboretum, 100 E. Northwestern Ave., Philadelphia 19118.