Nine-year-old Stormi was determined to be the best Girl Scout she could be and sell as many as cookies as possible.
Stormi has a strong belief that Girl Scouts bring smiles to peoples’ faces and she wanted to take part in spreading that kind of happiness. With a solid sales pitch and goal in mind, Stormi set out to knock on doors and sell cookies to her neighbors. While Stormi was out making friends with her neighbors and knocking on doors, a man called out to her, saying: “Nobody wants to buy cookies from a boy in a dress.”
Stormi is transgender and has been in the foster care system for three years. Despite any challenges or adversities that come her way, Stormi has always stayed strong and continued to chase her goals. By being a Girl Scout, Stormi wanted to help donate cookies to other local foster children in Illinois who were in similar situations to her.
She was determined not to let a harsh comment from a stranger stop her from pursuing a goal she had already set for herself. Stormi began selling her cookies through the Girl Scouts’s online portal, Digital Cookies. Through this medium, Stormi has effectively shut down her bully by selling over 3,000 boxes of cookies. To further her point, Stormi asked people to choose the “deliver in person” option so that she can personally thank everyone who has supported her. She states, “I have learned that even though people can be mean I shouldn’t give up!”
Many noteworthy public figures and organizations have united around Stormi’s cause. A California multimedia musical, 35MM: A Musical Exhibition, took to Facebook to promote their campaign to donate a box of Girl Scout cookies to Stormi for every ticket sold. The Idaho Falls Gender Community, an LGBTQ support group, also put out their own call for support. In a post made on their Facebook page, the Idaho Falls Gender Community pointed out how Stormi had been “met with negativity, no orders, and even one less than kind person.” The community asked its followers to support Stormi’s mission to fight negativity with positivity.
There have been many recent cases of Transgender Girl Scouts struggling to gain acceptance. In 2011, a Girl Scout troop in Coloardo accepted a 7 year old transgender girl. In response to this, several troops around the country disbanded or called for a boycott of the organization. In Houston, a group called the “Honest Girl Scouts” claimed that the Girl Scouts of the USA was not being honest with its members. “Girl Scouts describes itself as an all-girl experience. With that label, families trust that the girls will be in an environment that is not only nurturing and sensitive to girls’ needs, but also safe for girls.” More recently, a Girl Scout troop in Washington was offered a $100,000 donation — as long the money was not used to support transgender children. The troop rejected the offer, choosing to stand in support of transgender Girl Scouts.
Girl Scouts of the USA, as an organization, supports LBGTQ children. On their website, the organization states, “If the child is recognized by the family and school/community as a girl and lives culturally as a girl, then Girl Scouts is an organization that can serve her in a setting that is both emotionally and physically safe.”
Kim Strobel, the foster mother of Stormi, told the Washington Post about how proud she is of the work Stormi has done. “She decided to donate boxes to something close to her heart — which is foster care. She took something that wasn’t so pleasant and she turned it into a positive experience.”
Stormi hopes to be able to continue to donate Girl Scout cookies to foster children and to make it into a personal tradition. In an interview with Buzzfeed, Stormi said, “I want kids like me to know they are perfect just the way they are. There are people all over the world that love you. Never give up because it does get better.”
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