Girl Scout cookies are an American favorite. But Monica Woodson knows that when Girl Scouts across southeastern Michigan do “revolutionary” things, local communities and even the world takes notice.

Located just outside of Eastern Market — one of the most popular Detroit destinations for foods of virtually any kind — is an organization that is also known by many for its longtime connection to a famous sweet treat. 

However, while anyone affiliated with the Girl Scouts of Southeastern Michigan would be delighted to discuss and sell many boxes of their popular fundraising Girl Scout cookies during a certain time of year, there is considerably more that can be said about the ever-evolving story of Girl Scouts across metro Detroit.  

In fact, sometimes that story stretches well beyond metro Detroit and Michigan, which will be the case when a group of metro Detroit Girl Scouts travel to California soon to participate in the Western Edge FIRST LEGO League Open robotics competition. The event, which will take place from May 31 through June 2 at the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, California, will bring together teams from around the world, including six Girl Scout Juniors from Farmington Hills — fifth graders Navika Anil, Raina Cranson, Aarushi Chatterjee, Katie Gee, Avery Pitchford and sixth grader Kate Wilpula — that comprise FIRST LEGO League Challenge Team 35450, also known as the “Gear Box Girls” by people that have become acquainted with the dedicated team coached by Karen Gee. 

“It’s incredibly exciting and we couldn’t be more proud of these young ladies,” said Monica Woodson, CEO of Girl Scouts of Southeastern Michigan (GSSEM), headquartered at 1155 Gratiot within the Brewery Park Corporate Campus. “They have worked so hard to get to this point in their journey, not only with their robot, but also through raising the funds necessary to get to the global competition.

“These girls, along with all of the Girl Scouts that participate in robotics and additional STEAM activities, are forging their own paths while preparing for a future without inequities, discrimination and glass ceilings.” 

From refurbished office space that formerly housed Detroit’s historic Stroh’s Brewery, Woodson and her team develop programs and activities that touch girls from miles away while focusing on the Girl Scouts’ four program pillars: entrepreneurship, outdoor education, life skills and STEAM. For example, the robotics experience that the Gear Box Girls and approximately 85 other area Girl Scouts have participated in since 2023 was supported by a partnership between GSSEM and FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Michigan, which has connected the Girl Scouts to additional community resources. 

As a result of the partnership, through robotics competitions like the FIRST LEGO League Michigan Championship in Saline on Dec. 16, 2023, where the Gear Box Girls earned an invitation to the global competition in Long Beach, California; and, specific age and troop-level training workshops, Girl Scouts across southeastern Michigan have been directly engaged in robotics. The participating Girl Scouts also have included Daisies (troopers between the ages of 5 and 6 or in kindergarten) that built and programmed a dinosaur LEGO robot with motors and motion sensors; and Brownies (second and third graders) that constructed and programmed a barking dog LEGO robot to demonstrate how robots interact with the world. 

These activities and more support the statement that Girl Scouts are “more than cookies,” which members of Woodson’s team say they have heard a time or two from their leader.     

“Girl Scout cookies are a great way to raise funds and awareness, and the activity of selling is a fun way of introducing Girl Scouts to the concepts of money, sales and working together toward a common goal,” Woodson, who oversees a service area that touches nine counties and reaches more than 22,000 girls, said. “That being said, we would be doing a disservice to our Girl Scouts and their communities if we didn’t introduce the boundless opportunities available to them. Girl Scouts of Southeastern Michigan represents girls with all sorts of curiosities, so we offer a variety of programs to stimulate and nurture those interests. When Girl Scouts are introduced to our dynamic and diverse programs, these amazing community projects are really the grand finale to a girl’s portfolio of experiences that bring the Girl Scout Law to life.”

Woodson’s mention of the “Girl Scout Promise and Law” provides a reminder of the profound words toward the end of the Girl Scouts Law that call for all Girl Scouts to “make the world a better place.” And there are several recent examples that show how Woodson and her team are helping area Girl Scouts respond to that noble call to action through programming that goes beyond robotics, like the 10-part “Virtual Friday Night Live with a Commissioner,” made possible through a partnership between GSSEM and the Michigan Women’s Commission, which allows Girl Scout Juniors, Cadettes, Seniors, Volunteers and Ambassadors to learn how to “make the changes they want to see in the world” through live virtual interaction with female leaders in Michigan government, such as Maria Martinez, deputy chief of staff for Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who will chat with Girl Scouts on the evening of May 24. Before that event, an expected 200-plus Girl Scouts and their chaperones will descend on downtown Detroit for Discover Detroit Day on Saturday, May 18, a collaboration between GSSEM and City Tour Detroit, which will allow the participating Girl Scouts to earn Discover Detroit, People Mover and Urban Explorer patches during a day focused on education and exploration. 

Then there are the ongoing Girl Scout Gold Award projects that address community issues, such as the project conducted by Sage Johnson, a member of Troop No. 43550 from Hartford Memorial Baptist Church. Johnson, a graduating senior at Mercy High School, created a project aimed at inspiring elementary and middle school students to explore STEM fields and develop problem-solving skills through experiments she conducted with students attending Paul Robeson Malcolm X Academy in Detroit. Due to the success of the project, which also included medical professionals as advisers, the school has decided to host the event annually. 

“From mental health services on school campuses to disability awareness on the playground to developing a pollinator garden, Gold Award Girl Scouts take action to discover a root cause of an issue that they feel passionate about that has national and/or global ties, while creating a sustainable and measurable impact,” explained Woodson, whose organization received a fundraising boost connected to the recent NFL draft thanks to a Girl Scout-themed, giant cleat artwork created by Laura Mettam — a GSSEM parent volunteer — and Kay Blair. The artistic giant cleat was installed at the Detroit Foundation Hotel as part of the DCLEATED exhibit, which raised money for local charities. “You never know what might spark a revolutionary resolution to an issue. And our Gold Award Girl Scouts embody this theory.” 

And while there may not be a way to predict just when a Girl Scout will do something that is “revolutionary,” one observer of the local team heading to California has an idea of what competitors from around the world are about to see. 

“The Girl Scouts are a force to reckon with,” proclaimed Leon Pryor Jr., a 2024 co-recipient of the Woodie Flowers Award presented by FIRST Michigan to outstanding mentors, who provided information and motivation to members of the Gear Box Girls and other Girl Scouts that participated in a Robotics Expo presented by GSSEM and FIRST Michigan in Dearborn on May 4. “For sure, their (the Gear Box Girls) invitation to compete in a global event is a victory for the entire local robotics and STEM community. Our team at Marygrove High School has volunteered at workshops where we have been able to share with Girl Scouts, and they tend to dominate FIRST LEGO League competitions.

“We wish the team going to Long Beach continued success and we encourage them to stay the course when it comes to STEM engagement.”  

Scott Talley is a native Detroiter, a proud product of Detroit Public Schools and a lifelong lover of Detroit culture in its diverse forms. In his second tour with the Free Press, which he grew up reading as a child, he is excited and humbled to cover the city’s neighborhoods and the many interesting people who define its various communities. Contact him at stalley@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @STalleyfreep. Read more of Scott’s stories at www.freep.com/mosaic/detroit-is/. Please help us grow great community-focused journalism by becoming a subscriber.