ALTON - Michelle Matsche wants to build a better world for her son, and she’s helping a lot of people while she does it.
Matsche, one of the YWCA’s ten 2025 Women of Distinction, will be honored at the Y’s annual gala for her commitment to the community. She works as the Director of Training and Development at Challenge Unlimited and serves as an ambassador for the Riverbend Growth Association. She also advocates for the neurodivergent community, a cause that is especially close to her heart after her 5-year-old son was diagnosed with autism.
“It is my passion to educate the community on how we can be most inclusive of our autistic and other neurodivergent friends,” Matsche said. “What I’ve really been focused on the last couple of years, and hope to lean into even more going forward, is just joining different groups and giving different presentations to community organizations on practical things that they can do to create more inclusive spaces and environments for neurodivergent people.”
Matsche started at Challenge Unlimited over 15 years ago. She works hard to “develop emotionally intelligent leaders” and create “psychologically safe workspaces” for the employees and clients she serves.
As a member of the Riverbend Growth Association, Matsche played a big role in developing the Women’s Leadership Program. This initiative culminates in an annual event, which Matsche emceed for several years, that brings together 200 women for an empowerment and leadership conference.
But in recent years, her advocacy work has mostly focused on neurodivergence and helping individuals on the autism spectrum. She knows the work is bigger than her own family, but she is motivated every day by her son. She wants to see a better world for him and other neurodivergent community members.
While Matsche is “honored” by the Women of Distinction recognition, she noted that it’s not a motivator for her work, and she will continue advocating no matter what.
“It feels great,” she explained. “But I’m sure that every single Woman of Distinction would say that’s definitely not what it’s about. Whether we were recognized or not recognized, we’re going to continue to do the work because we don’t do it for the recognition. We do it because we have a passion and we see a need and we just want to make our communities a better place.”
For others who want to engage in community service or activism, Matsche encourages them to reach out to an existing organization or a community member who is doing work that resonates with them. She noted that help is needed everywhere, and everyone can do their part.
“There are so many great organizations out there that you sometimes can feel a bit overwhelmed with where to take the first step, what direction that could be,” she said. “A great place would be just reaching out to maybe a community organization that currently exists that can help point you in the right direction, and then from there, you can navigate what feels right for you.”
This is the ninth in a series of articles about the ten 2025 Women of Distinction. For more information about the YWCA’s Women of Distinction Gala, visit the official YWCA Facebook page.
