Girl Scouts of Colorado each year recognizes three extraordinary women as the Western Slope Women of the Year, and the Grand Junction Business Incubator Center’s Helen Roe is one of this year’s honorees.

Roe, the director of business funding and loans at the incubator center, was selected along with Laurel Walters and Lisa Martin.

“I am so honored to be considered and included among the ranks of the incredible women who have been recognized before me and whom I have the privilege of standing next to today. I am blessed to do work I love, and it’s just above and beyond that I get to be honored for it,” Roe said.

Leanna Clark, chief executive officer of Girl Scouts of Colorado, said this year’s awardees are “powerful examples of leadership and excellence, and their strength, boldness and empowerment make them outstanding role models who inspire our girls and power today’s world.”

Dalida Sassoon Bollig, CEO of the Business Incubator Center, said Roe “is a woman of distinction in all she does. As a serial entrepreneur herself, she is passionate about supporting small business owners, guiding them through their journey and cultivating opportunities to see them grow and scale. She is deserving of this recognition, and the BIC team and board of directors are proud to celebrate her today.”

Roe moved to Grand Junction after spending more than two decades as a successful, serial entrepreneur on the Front Range. She went on to earn degrees in marketing and accounting from Colorado Mesa University before being offered an internship at the Business Incubator Center.

From the start, Roe knew the Business Incubator Center was where she wanted to be and jumped at the chance when a job opportunity was available. Nineteen years later, Roe is director of business funding and loans as part of the Business Incubator Center leadership team and is a small-business coach specializing in accounting, finance and strategic business planning.

In 2011, she was named the State of Colorado Small Business Development Center Counselor of the Year.

To round out her skills, Roe is a certified forklift operator. She is a former member of the Mesa County Executive Fair Board and currently serves on the advisory board of the Grand Junction Housing Authority Family Self-Sufficiency program.