Melanie Lee
Community Outreach
Marketing Chair
I volunteer for Neighbors Network to bring aid, security, and joy to the elderly population in our community. My parents and grandparents taught me to be respectful, generous, and helpful toward everyone, but especially toward older folks. They also taught me to repair rather than replace, which means I had many lessons in fixing “stuff.” As my grandparents grew older, I was the one tapped to help out, whether that meant driving them places, cooking meals, or hanging out with their friends and them at their retirement trailer park. I am proud to be part of an organization that focuses on helping people in the same way I used to help my grandparents, and later on, my mother and sister.
My husband and I own a home health care agency, and we know the difference just one person can make in the life of someone who needs a ride, craves companionship, or requires some help around the house. Neighbors Network volunteers create bonds with people as they help them take care of tasks they cannot do alone anymore. The volunteers allow our members to maintain their dignity while receiving the help and social contact they need.
I appreciate the opportunity to be on the board of Neighbors Network as the Community Outreach and Marketing Co-Chair. I enjoy spreading the word about this incredible organization as I market around Central Florida for my agency!
Vision
My vision for Neighbors Network is to expand it to more and more zip codes. I run into people throughout Seminole, Orange, and Osceola Counties who could really benefit from our services. We are limited by the volunteers we have in various locations. My aim is to increase the number of volunteers into other zip codes so that we can reach more people who need us.
More about Me
I am a long-time member of First United Methodist Church of Orlando. Since 1988, I have served the church in various leadership capacities. Most recently, I serve as the leader of Forward Together: All Means All, which is a ministry seeking to create radical inclusion of all marginalized groups. Forward Together led our church into becoming a fully LGBTQ+ affirming congregation. We are now focusing on disabled children, teens, and adults, restarting a Buddy Break program, which we hope will open in the fall.
My husband, Kim, and I have been married 43 years, and we have 3 children and 4 grandchildren. We enjoy traveling, hiking, and being with our family. I am a vegetarian and like to create interesting meatless dishes. We both sing in our church choir, and we have fun with karaoke at home. I retired from teaching science, mostly high school chemistry, and I now work full-time for our home care agency.