The Sarah Caswell Angell Chapter, (SCA), in Ann Arbor, proudly announces the recipients of the 2025-2026 DAR Good Citizen Award from local high schools. The award honors outstanding high school seniors who exemplify the qualities of good citizenship within their homes, schools and communities.
Selected by their high school faculty, the criteria for selection encompass Dependability, Service, Leadership and Patriotism. Six area schools participated, including Chelsea, Dexter, Manchester, Pioneer, Saline, and Whitmore Lake High Schools, as they have in the past. Our chapter winners for the Good Citizen Awards winners include:
- Samantha Bieber, Chelsea High School
- Rebekah Murillo, Dexter High School
- Nathalie Coughlin, Saline High School
- Lucy Baran, Manchester High School
- Abigail Hood, Pioneer High School
- Elodie Weaver, Whitmore Lake High School
Each chapter selects one student who then competes at the state level. The SCA DAR Good Citizen Winner is Abigail Hood from Pioneer High School. “These experiences have given her a deep understanding of service, compassion, and global citizenship,” stated SCA Good Citizen Chair, Sharon Clark. “She is exactly the kind of young leader the DAR Good Citizen Award was created to honor.”
Nominated by Lisabeth Mikolajczyk, a teacher at Pioneer High School, states that Abigail is a highly accomplished student and athlete, participating in Varsity Cross Country and Varsity Track & Field for four years, and serving as Cross Country Team Captain. She is also a member of the Purple Track Club, National Honor Society, and holds leadership roles as President of the French Club, Treasurer of Craft and Connect Club, and Head of the Women’s Board for the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Club. Her commitment to service extends well beyond school. Abigail has volunteered more than 80 hours with the Humane Society of Huron Valley, worked as a summer camp counselor at St. Francis of Assisi Parish, and is employed at Rosa’s Squeeze Inn, where she serves as a dishwasher and hostess. Abigail shared that community service has shaped her character and sense of purpose. “I have tried to use service to make a meaningful impact beyond myself,” she wrote. She plans to attend a four-year university this fall and plans to study political science and law, with the goal of attending law school and becoming a Human Resources attorney.
Kristyna Rabassa, Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State states that “Abby embodies a quiet but true love for her country . . . Her patriotism is not performative, but rather is grounded in an unselfish commitment to family, school, community, and the enduring ideals of the United States.”…