It’s cookie time

It’s Girl Scout Cookie season again.

The Girl Scouts are now taking pre-orders on all of your favorite cookies until Friday, Jan. 30.

This year’s sale began with a cookie kickoff at the Moab Arts and Recreation Center on Saturday, Jan. 17. In the coming days, local Girl Scouts will be reaching out to longtime customers by phone, and they’ll also be going door to door on Saturdays in search of new customers, according to Girl Scouts of Moab Service Unit Director Michele Hill.

Local residents can also go online to stock up on vegan Thin Mints, lemon wedge cookies and traditional shortbread cookies, among other goodies.

“There is an online opportunity to order from the ease of your home, if anyone is interested in doing so,” Hill said.

For information about online orders, Hill advises residents to check out the Cookie Compass at http://www.gsutah.org/cookie-compass.

“You can go on there and choose the cookies you want,” Hill said.

Online monitors will automatically forward those orders on to a Girl Scout who lives nearby.

“They find out where a person is living, and then assign it to a scout,” Hill said.

People who place their orders between now and Jan. 30 can expect to receive their orders some time between late February and early March.

Stragglers will also have an opportunity to buy cookies in person later this year. The Girl Scouts typically set up a cookie booth at City Market some time in March, although no date has been set for this year’s sale.

If people go to the booth expecting to find their favorite cookies, Hill suggested they might be in for a disappointment.

“When we sell cookies at City Market, it’s usually the leftovers in a carton,” Hill said. “To get the cookies you want, they should absolutely be pre-ordered.”

Hill said she sees this year’s cookie kickoff as a great way to teach Girl Scouts about many skills they’ll use later in life.

“We’re trying to make little entrepreneurs out of these Scouts,” Hill said.

According to Hill, they learned about everything from money handling to problem solving and how to interact with their customers, based on the principles of the Girl Scout Promise and Law.

“It’s all about being a good citizen,” she said.

With the skills they picked up over the weekend, they can help someone with peanut allergies find cookies that are peanut-free. Likewise, they’ll be in a better position to point cookie lovers who don’t care for chocolate in the right direction.

Girl Scout Cookie pre-orders continue until Jan. 30

When: Now through Friday, Jan. 30

Where: Girl Scouts will be going door to door; you can also place orders online at http://www.gsutah.org/cookie-compass

Cost: Varies

For more information about how to place your order, go to http://www.gsutah.org/how-to-purchase.