Everyone has a story.

Throughout our creation of The Eagle Eye, we have attempted to discover and capture the stories of numerous individuals and events. We have spent countless hours asking the tough questions, finding fascinating angles and letting our curiosity consume us.

Now that our time to leave the nest has nearly arrived, we have one final untold story to share with you: the story of our fearless journalism advisor, role model, guide, second mother and friend. The one and only Princess Ashley Pagel Bagel (you can thank Michael Cappella, Class of 2014, for that nickname), or as she is more commonly known, Mrs. Pagel.

The star of our story is not one to talk about herself, so naturally she had doubts about us writing this article. But how could we resist? Her very essence begs to be written about and her journalism students can’t seem to talk about her enough.

Maybe it’s her perfectly put together outfits every day that go hand in hand with her just-right hairstyle and makeup. But that only begins to scratch the surface of what makes Mrs. Pagel so extraordinary. We could go on for hours, but given our limited space and your limited attention span, we will keep it relatively short.

She has been our rock in times of distress and tears, always reminding us to give our worries to God. This usually happens in conjunction with newspaper deadlines, but her words of wisdom go far beyond our journalistic concerns.

We often find ourselves asking, “What would Mrs. Pagel do?” This question hasn’t failed us to date. And the answer usually ends up being something along the lines of “pray about it” or “eat some cottage cheese,” both of which usually help Mrs. Pagel when she needs some inspiration.

Mrs. Pagel knows us far better than we would like to admit. On multiple occasions she has given us ‘that look’ and inquired “what’s wrong?” despite our conviction that we had expertly camouflaged our emotions. Though this may seem insignificant, we can always count on the fact that for Mrs. Pagel, our mental health and emotional well-being come before any deadline, obligation or other pressing matter.

I think we know Mrs. Pagel far better than she would like to admit also, considering we’ve basically adopted her lingo and begun to quote her infamous “Pagelisms” in our daily conversations. A few of our favorites are “that’s sick,” “what a snob,” “potentially” and the ever-affirming “but really.” In almost all cases, her infinite amounts of sass accompany these equally sassy phrases.

Don’t even get us started on the Pagel family. Well, on second thought, a little briefing never hurt anyone, right?

Mrs. Pagel is married to quite possibly the nicest man on Planet Earth and he happens to work in the Development Office at SMCHS. His visits to B217 during class are met with yells and comments such as “Mr. Pagel, you look so swag today!” from Maggie. We firmly believe that all men should take a lesson from him. He treats Mrs. Pagel like a princess because, as her nickname suggests, she is one.

And the main attraction is, of course, their little 2-year-old Grace who can be described simply as ‘child goals’. From her adorably chubby cheeks to her curiosity and intelligence, she’s impossible not to love. And she’s certainly received a lot of love from us as evidenced by the many layout day selfies we both have with her.

The icing on the cake? They have another baby on the way! And unsurprisingly, they plan on naming it Alexandra Margaret, in memory of the fallen chief and her comrade, Mag$wag Morris, grammar snob.

We wish.

Just as we are now soaring from the nest, so soars Mrs. Pagel because she cannot bear to remain at SMCHS without us. Next year, she will be going on to bigger and better things including her new baby, who is sure to become an incredible journalist just like his/her mom. Truth be told, Mrs. Pagel singlehandedly reinvented the newspaper in just two years (I suppose we had a bit of a hand in it too). SMCHS and The Eagle Eye won’t be the same without her, but rest assured she leaves an unforgettable legacy behind.

Besides, this isn’t the end. Graduation is still a few weeks away but we are already planning numerous summer lunch dates with Mrs. Pagel. That should give you a good indication of just how much we enjoy our time spent with her.

Our two-year story with Mrs. Pagel may have been too short for our liking, but we consider ourselves blessed to have been able to work with, love and appreciate one of the all-around greatest people we have ever encountered.

But really.