Annual cookie craze returns to Carson City area

The rumblings start in mid-January, and by the end of February it has reached a sugar-enhanced roar. When the little boxes of sweet goodness roll off the truck, thousands of them are already spoken for by Carson City residents.

Everyone has their favorite, from long-standing staples like the Thin Mints and Caramel deLites to the newest members of the family, Thanks Alots and Cartwheels.

"Selling cookies is like being a part of an event. People look forward to them and want to get Girl Scout cookies," said Christie James, cookie coordinator for Carson City.

More than 23,000 boxes of the sweet treats arrived in town Monday, and the 122 Girl Scouts in the area will begin booth sales of the cookies at several locations this weekend. The cookies will be on sale through the end of this month.

There are eight varieties sold at $3.50 a box. The old favorites are back and are joined by two new offerings: Cartwheels, a silver-dollar sized oatmeal cookie with cinnamon sprinkled on; and Thanks Alots, a shortbread cookie with chocolate on one side and "thanks a lot" written in one of five languages.

"They try to change one or two cookies a year, but some will always stay," James said. "There will always be a shortbread cookie because that was the original Girl Scout cookie."

The most popular choice is Thin Mints, which accounts for 25 percent of the organization's cookie sales. Thin Mints are so popular now that they have become the third best-selling cookie in the United States, bested only by Oreos and Chips Ahoy.

"That's a big deal because the others are sold year-round and Girl Scout cookies are only sold for about 90 days," James said.

James also said she expects the Lemon Pastry Cremes to be very popular because this is the last year they will be offered. They will be replaced with a different lemon-flavored cookie in 2007.

While the main thrust of the cookie sales is to raise money for the Girl Scout Organization, selling the cookies also helps the girls learn a variety of skills they can use for the rest of their lives.

"It's more than a fundraiser. The girls are taking responsibility and it helps their people skills, their presentation skills and their math skills. It makes them follow through," James said. "They learn an awful lot about being a part of the community. They learn follow through and responsibility."

The girls also collect donations for troops serving overseas and plan to send boxes of the Thanks Alots to soldiers stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"We had one man hand us a $100 check and said send them to the soldiers," James said.

The cookies are available until the end of the month and can be purchased by the case - meaning 12 boxes of one variety - for $42.

-- Contact reporter Jarid Shipley at jshipley@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1217.

For sale

Girl Scouts will begin booth sales of the eight varieties of cookies this weekend. Cookies can be purchased by calling 322-0642 or at:

North Albertsons, 3620 N. Carson St.

South Albertsons, 4348 S. Carson St.

Raley's Supermarket, 3701 S. Carson St.

Safeway, 2035 N. Carson St.

Wal-Mart Supercenter, 3200 Market Way