Michele: Once Her Girl Scout, Always Her Girl Scout

October 05, 2026

For 32 years, Michele has been a Girl Scout leader and after all those years, she still has one small troop that she calls her last.

She knows the day will come when it’s time to retire, and she knows it will be bittersweet. But when she looks back, what stands out most aren’t the years. It’s the girls.

Michele loves watching Girl Scouts take on something they never thought they could do. She pushes them just a little beyond their comfort zones, then gets to watch that moment when they realize, I did it.

That moment—the surprise, the pride, the confidence—is what has stayed with her most.

“I always think of my girls as ‘mine,’ no matter what age,” Michele shared. “So many times I say, ‘She was my Girl Scout!’ when I see or hear something about one of them.”

Her decades of service were recognized when she received the Carolyn Sloan Spirit of Nebraska Award in 2016, an honor she says meant even more knowing Carolyn’s family took the time to thoughtfully consider each nominee.

But perhaps the greatest measure of Michele’s impact is much simpler: after 32 years, she still remembers her girls. And they are still part of her.

Here’s to the leaders who show girls what they’re capable of and keep cheering them on long after they leave their troop.

100 years. Countless stories. One lasting legacy.