WATERLOO - When the Girl Scouts came knocking on Julie Ehlers door, they dropped off quite a load or cookies.

Those hundreds upon hundreds of boxes of Thin Mints and Carmel Delights won't stay there long.

"We decided when the war broke out, we'd start shipping boxes over there so the men and women weren't forgotten," said Ehlers.

Ehlers and her organization, Iowa's Bravest, have sent out holiday boxes since 2003. New this year, they turned to the folks who know how to cure a mid-year sweet tooth.

Michaela Allen and her troop of Girl Scouts is just one of the two dozen troops that came together to load up Ehlers' garage in Waterloo.

When asked about her advice on the project, Allen offered the following advice: "Maybe Cinna-spins, cause Thin Mints would just melt."

Ehlers said that won't matter, the soldiers will appreciate anything they get.

"I wish I would have thought of this one earlier, this is our first Girl Scout Cookie Project, and it's been a huge success," said Ehlers.

This latest installment will fill 100 large boxes. Since they started sending boxes back in 2003, Ehlers said they've shipped out about 19 tons of thoughts from home. This load will make it 22 tons.

Now, since we've been in Iraq for five years, Ehlers said she knows this makes a difference.

"When they're over there, they think they've been forgotten. I think that's what really pushes most of us that have been working on this project. They're over there doing their job everyday thinking nobody back home is thinking about them," said Ehlers.

Back home, they are thinking.

It's even written on the cookies, "Thank You."

Email Justin Foss at Justin.Foss@kcrg.com