You’ve gotten to know them over the years for their shortbreads, thin mints and peanut butter patties, but some tough cookies want to show that Girl Scouts can get dirt under their nails and do manual labor to give back to their community, too.

Prairie Overlook and Sunnyside Cemetery in Coupeville received some attention in honor of Earth Day, thanks to a crew of Central Whidbey Girl Scouts. Earth Day was Monday, but since Wednesday was a half day of school for the Coupeville girls, the belated timing was perfect.

Maintaining the prairie overlook will be an on-going project for the Central Whidbey Girl Scouts. They plan to hold two major project days per year, and each month a troop will sign-up to be in charge of that month’s clean-up, according to Kathy Vass, Central Whidbey Girl Scout service unit events coordinator.

After receiving the call to volunteer from the Central Whidbey Girls Scouts, Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve gladly accepted the offer.

“We’ve needed to do something with this patch of land, so they’ve been extremely helpful,” said Pat Cozine, administrative assistant for Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve.

Cozine helped guide the girls during their day of clean-up at the prairie overlook. The girls were instructed how to use the heavy, bright orange weed wrenches, which Cozine was “amazed seeing considering some of their size, and this Scotch broom can be pretty tough.”

“Hopefully we’ll make it so other people can have a good time and enjoy the view,” Oak Harbor resident Shelby Walker, age 10, said.

According to Cozine, the reserve is always looking for other volunteers, because “there are so many different projects,” from people working on the web site, to helping make the oral history project by Theresa Trebon accessible to researchers by putting together binders of information.

“It’s especially important to catch these young kids and show them the history that’s on the ground and not in a book — it’s right here,” Cozine said.

Cozine was also a Girl Scout.

“I remember selling the cookies, cooking taffy, and making handicrafts, but back then we didn’t do all the camping and activities these girls do now, and I wish I could have done that,” she said.

Girl Scouts of America currently helps 2.8 million girls across the nation serve their communities and develop skills in everything from sports to science.

“These girls get to see and do things they might not otherwise get the chance to do, such as work with computers or learn how to do science experiments, and then learn about jobs in the related fields,” Vass said.

During a state-wide Girl Scouting program in Burlington called Tiny Trusses, the girls were asked to build bridges that were then tested by professional engineers on things such as load and structure stability, and quite literally see whose held up.

Girls participating in Girl Scouts on Whidbey are broken into three service units: Oak Harbor, serving North Whidbey; Coupeville, serving Central Whidbey; and Langley, serving South Whidbey.

Sadly, there is a shortage of adult volunteers on island, said Lynn Marrs of the Oak Harbor service unit, and “every year the program loses girls, because they contact the service units and they eventually lose interest in the program because there aren’t enough adults to volunteer.”

Marrs’ daughter, Kristi, is a senior at Oak Harbor High School and has been involved with Girl Scouts off-and-on since the fourth grade. Her mother attributes Kristi’s scouting experience to exposing her daughter to “being a team leader and player and learning to become involved with the community.”

Penny Roehrich, assistant troop leader, and Girl Scout Cadet Shaye Walker will be among the 5,000 Washington Girl Scouts who plan to walk Seattle’s I-90 bridge May 19, in honor of the organization’s 90th birthday. The walk on the bridge will be followed by an afternoon of activities at the Key Arena which includes a pre-season Seattle Storm game.

“Involvement in the community is good for girls to learn at an early age, and this project today, like the beach clean up, also helps them be more aware of the environment,” Vass said.

Yes, they still sell cookies. But don’t be fooled, it takes a lot for these tough cookies to crumble. Beware when challenging a member of Girl Scout Troop 932 to “rock, paper, scissors.” They’re tough competitors, and you might just end up as an “egg” while they reign as “Ms. Smarty Pants.” If you become Superman, you’re almost there, but practice makes perfect, and with all the giggling you won’t mind being defeated — over and over again.

It’s all part of the fun, laughter and learning of Girl Scouts.