The End Of An Era – Minnesota Cookie Lady Shut Down By Complaining Parent

Who doesn’t love cookies? Well, apparently there is at least one parent in Chanhassen, Minnesota who doesn’t, a lesson that resident cookie lady Anne Tabat had to learn the hard way. And honestly? I’m torn on how I feel about this.

Ever since Anne moved to the suburb of Minneapolis at age 40 she says she missed the small town feeling of where she grew up. She soon began a tradition that lasted 15 years – bringing cookies to the school bus every Friday for the driver and kids. She says it started as a gesture of thanks for just the driver, but she felt bad at not giving one to each child as well, so she did just that.

She continued her little cookie ritual for a decade and a half, but was forced to stop this week after an anonymous complaint by a parent. According to Anne, who talked to mprnews.com, a local Minnesota news site:

”I think it’s somebody who just didn’t bother to get to know me and I think that’s what the sin is here. I didn’t live in the suburbs until I turned 40,” she told me yesterday, while baking some of the 200 dozen cookies she’ll need for her family’s annual cookie party for anyone who wants to show up.”

Anne went on to lament the fact that neighbors rarely speak to each other any longer, and that she had hoped to break down some of those barriers with sweet, sweet cookies:

”Look at the way these houses are designed here. They’re not designed with a friendly neighborliness community in mind. I haven’t been in most of the houses in my neighborhood. People live such busy lives; you don’t talk to your neighbors, you don’t know your neighbors.”

Now, I love a good cookie as much as the next guy. In fact, there aren’t a lot of people that I personally know would turn down a free cookie. Unless, of course you or your child has an allergy, or diabetes, or any number of other issues that might make it difficult to take free food from a stranger, albeit a super nice and caring stranger.

Did the complaining parent make the right move? If it were me, and I had an issue with the free cookies (that doesn’t even feel right writing out, let alone saying out loud. I mean, FREE COOKIES), I would have gone to the source. Even Anne acknowledged that she could understand that issue. According to Anne she would have gladly have worked with specific parents who had kids with food allergies or other issues.

I can kind of understand why someone might be worried about someone they don’t know giving their kid free food that they haven’t inspected. But, does this parent complain about birthday cupcakes? Free samples at the local supermarket? Who knows, they just might. It’s just sad that the cookie ladies awesome reign of cookie love had to end. So hats off to you, cookie lady. You can come to my house and deliver cookies anytime you want.