Geneva church's Cookie Walk tradition celebrates its 39th year
One of Geneva's oldest and sweetest holiday traditions returns for its 39th year when the Unitarian Universalist Society of Geneva hosts its annual Cookie Walk on Friday, Dec. 2.
Held in conjunction with the city's popular Christmas Walk celebration, the Cookie Walk fundraiser offers a wide array of festive holiday cookies, homemade by church members from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Elves will be paired up with each guest, walking them through Cookie Lane, filling the box as they go. Cookie Walk guests choose around two dozen cookies and Elves box them.
The price for each box is $15 (cash, check or credit cards are accepted). Money raised at the event goes to support the work of the church and the social justice programs it sponsors, including Habitat for Humanity homebuilding and local nonprofit organizations such as Lazarus House and the Northern Illinois Food Bank.
New this year, the church will also be selling hot cocoa and coffee during the Christmas Walk on its Third Street property, directly west of the church.
The hot cocoa is made with milk, and the coffee is Equal Exchange, a fair trade worker-owned cooperative. Each cup is $2. Cash or credit cards are accepted.
Finally, there will be a raffle for a set of four Christmas-themed stained glass art pieces.
Raffle tickets are $5 or five for $20. Winner will be drawn at the close of the sale and need not be present to win.
In 2021, over 40 church volunteers baked more than 8,000 cookies and the church expects to bake even more this year.
"One of the greatest things about the Cookie Walk is the variety. Our bakers all have different favorites, some of which include family recipes that have been passed down over generations. It is such a treat for the bakers to share and, of course, for the recipients," said third-generation church member and longtime cookie baker Jenny Montgomery. "I spend days on end in my kitchen preparing for this event, but baking with a friend has become a tradition we both look forward to."
Cookie Walk customers seem to agree. Each year, the lines to buy cookies form early and cookies sell out fast.
Founded in 1842, the Unitarian Universalist Society of Geneva is the oldest church in town, part of a centuries-old liberal religious tradition that values reason and free thought over dogma and creed. Led by the Rev. Scot Hull, it is a unique religious voice in the community, offering worship services and religious education programs that draw on diverse spiritual traditions, as well as outreach initiatives that advance social justice causes locally and around the world. Learn more at www.uusg.org.