Mel and his wife Claudia moved to Sandpoint in 2002 after Mel spent thirty years working in the public accounting profession with Arthur Andersen. In 2002 Mel joined Coldwater Creek as its Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Mel retired from the corporate world in 2008 and is currently involved with several family businesses and spends a majority of his time on community activities focused on youth and education.

Mel’s involvement with education has always been a significant part of his life. Prior to moving to North Idaho, Mel was the President of the Board of Directors of the Adult Learning Source, a major non-profit in Denver, Colorado that helped students obtain their GEDs. Prior to joining the PAFE Board, Mel did a cross country bicycle trip to help raise funds for the establishment of PAFE’s Ready for Kindergarten program.

Mel is a member of the Sandpoint Rotary and has served on the Sandpoint Chamber’s Tourism Council. Mel is a member of Team Laughing Dog, a Sandpoint-based bicycle team that competes in the Race Across America to raise funds and awareness for various causes such as autism and Cystinosis. Mel also helps coordinate the Sandpoint Rotary’s annual CHAFE 150 bicycle ride which has raised money to support Lake Pend Oreille School District (LPOSD) students on the autism spectrum, LPOSD’s after-school reading and literacy programs and LPOSD’s Book Trust program.

In addition to the PAFE board Mel has served on the Board of Directors of the Sandpoint Rotary, the Russian/ American Chamber of Commerce and Leadership Denver Alumni Association and has worked with numerous other non-profits including the United Way of Denver, the American Cancer Society, Hope Communities and Partners, Inc.