By Christine Persichette
Every Wednesday evening, Milissa Harmon stands at the door of St. Athanasius Catholic Academy in Brooklyn, greeting each boy arriving for Boy Scout Troop 99 meetings with a warm hello and a quick check-in.
As her husband, Eddie, serves as scoutmaster, Milissa Harmon is the behind-the-scenes force keeping the troop running smoothly: she tracks every detail—from contact lists to uniform sizes—and ensures nothing falls through the cracks.
Father Michael Lynch, pastor of St. Athanasius Church, calls her “one of the pillars of everything that happens in there.”
“It’s her computer that has all the connected contacts on it,” he told Currents News. “It’s she who knows the sizes of everybody who needs to have what they need to have. Like she’s supermom — but she’s super Scout mom!”
Milissa Harmon sees the troop as family. “The boys come from all walks of life, all backgrounds,” she said, “but when we come here, we come here as one and we’re a family. These are my boys.”
Her own sons grew up in the troop and both earned the rank of Eagle Scout. She credits scouting with teaching them discipline, care for others and—most importantly—a deeper connection to the Catholic faith.
Though Harmon is a cradle Catholic and her husband is Jewish, the couple chose to let their three children decide their religious path.
Scouting kept God and reverence central without pushing any specific denomination.
The turning point came when her children attended a retreat to earn the Ad Altare Dei Catholic emblem. They chose to be baptized.
“I was very happy,” Harmon recalled. “It was something that was very moving to me… Watching them make that decision on their own just brought pure joy and happiness to me.”
Now the entire Harmon family attends Mass together, including Eddie.
“When I come to church, I am a better person,” Milissa Harmon said. “I’m better at work, at home, here at the scouts —just a better person in general.”
Beyond meetings, she spends countless hours planning events and supporting the boys.
“People think scouting is a once-a-week thing,” she explained. “It’s more like an every-day thing, sometimes 40 hours a week thing!”
She has no plans to step away. “Because my boys, my boys that I didn’t give birth to are still here,” she explained.
“These children are my children, and until the last one makes Eagle, I’ll probably still be here.”
Milissa Harmon is the pulse of St. Athanasius parish, leading with love, organization and unwavering commitment to the next generation.