Michelle Hauser
Michelle Hauser’s super power is the ability to make friends.
Having moved numerous times during her life, first as a Navy brat and then as a Navy wife, Michelle dove into the fundraising and sisterhood of the Bloomington Alpha chapter from Day 1. From attending the many sisterhood socials to showing up at every fundraising work day to taking on the leadership of the big Blingo event, Michelle has proven to be a great volunteer and sister.
Michelle was born in Annapolis, Md., where her dad was stationed with the U.S. Navy. In the next five years, her family moved to Virginia Beach, Naples, Italy, and finally Charleston, S.C., where they stayed put for the rest of Michelle’s childhood.
She studied elementary education at the College of Charleston before embarking on a 13-year teaching career, mostly in first-grade classrooms. Along the way, she married her husband, John, and they kept up the military tradition of moving every few years.
Their trek took them from South Carolina to Virginia, North Carolina, Hawaii, Minnesota, Puerto Rico, back to Minnesota and then Boston before landing in Bloomington. Some of those moves have been with Boston Scientific, where Michelle’s husband is in management.
Michelle says Tri Kappa was a natural fit for her.
“I always have had friends,” Michelle says. “I was in the Alpha Delta Pi sorority in college, where I had different groups of friends. Being in the Navy, where people have to up and move all the time, you’re a part of a wives’ community. You’re all going through the same thing: your husbands are deploying and you have to make friends because you need that support system.
“It usually takes a good year normally to (start to fit in),” Michelle says. “Bloomington has been the anomaly, though. We had five people show up at our door in the first week to welcome us to the neighborhood.”
Michelle also quickly met Nancy Gettinger (while drinking wine and listening to music) and Moriah Sowders, who works with John. They began talking up the many reasons Michelle should join Tri Kappa, and she agreed.
“Tri Kappa is just a good fit for me,” Michelle says. “I can use my fundraising and organizational skill sets to help raise money.
“(Tri Kappa) helped me find people who want the social aspect (of the sisterhood) and want to truly help the community.”
More About Michelle:
Volunteers with two golden-retriever rescue organizations
Falls asleep to “The Golden Girls” each night
Has a master’s from Concordia University in Minnesota
Loves a good boat ride
Was an All-American sailing athlete in college