"Coach MEL" was born in Orlando Florida in 1964. She was raised in the Bahamas, where she attended kindergarten and then moved to the US to Satellite Beach in 1969 where she has resided ever since! As a child growing up in Satellite Beach, she was very active as a Girl Scout which introduced her to many of her passions in life....camping, canoeing, biking, and boating. Like most girls growing up in Satellite Beach, "The junior softball capital of the world", when she turned 8 she started her career in softball, playing for all the city travel age teams. As a sophomore in high school, Melanie discovered a new passion.... VOLLEYBALL!! Her volleyball career took off in 1980 where she was a standout for Satellite High School and then accepted a scholarship to University of Central Florida where she was a mainstay of her college team. After graduating from UCF, she took the position at Astronaut High School as the Head Girls Volleyball Coach, soccer coach, and math instructor. Her career then brought her back to Satellite Beach where she became an elementary PE teacher at Surfside Elementary and Sea Park Elementary.