There are already 6,000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies in Boyle County, ready to be sold by 53 Girl Scouts from six local troops, according to Melanie Tackett, the Boyle County Service Unit Manager for the troops.

Booth sales will start on Saturday at Walmart, Lowe’s and Kroger, where Girl Scouts will be selling cookies every weekend until March 24, when cookie sales officially ends.

The Scouts will also be selling cookies door-to-door, taking pre-orders and setting up booths at different events throughout the county.

On Saturday, local Girl Scouts will also be participating in Kentucky’s First Lady’s Shop and Share service project at Kroger for the state’s 15 domestic violence shelter programs. It is a joint initiative of the First Lady’s Office, the Girl Scout Councils of Kentucky and Kroger, according to a news release. On Saturday, Girl Scouts will not only be selling cookies, they will also be helping to collect needed items for the shelters, such as cleaning supplies, paper products, diapers, soap and shampoo.

The 6,000 boxes already delivered here are just a start for the local sale, Tackett said. Last year the girls sold 12,750 boxes of cookies, which was more than 200,000 individual cookies. Boxes contain between 15 and 40 cookies per box, depending on the flavor, Tackett said. It’s easy to sell cookies, but it takes a lot of hard work to transport cases of cookies from one location to another, she added.

New this year is a gluten free caramel chocolate chip cookie which sells for $5 a box. All other flavors are $4 a box.

This is the 102nd year of Girl Scout cookie sales. The effort is the largest girl-led business in the world, Tackett said.

A portion of the profits from the annual cookie sale goes to support the Girl Scouts of Kentucky Wilderness Road Council’s camps and activities. The local troop proceeds are used to help the troops with their supplies, badges, awards, community service projects and planned activities, such as camping trips, Tackett explained.

The business end of selling cookies teaches the girls money management, decision making, business ethics and goal setting skills, as well as how to work together to reach a common goal, she said.

To find where Girl Scout cookies are being sold, visit gskentucky.org, click on “Cookies and More,” then “Find Cookies.” Put in your zip code and all cookie booths in the area will be listed. You can also download the Girl Scout Cookie Finder app to your cell phone, Tackett said.

Editor’s note: Melanie Tackett is an advertising consultant for The Advocate-Messenger.