Today, Melody is an ACA Coastal Kayak Instructor Trainer, teaching on the stunning waters of Lake Superior and the Apostle Islands. Her journey toward making paddling a career crystallized during her initial Instructor Certification around 2007–2008, where she found herself surrounded by people who had already made that leap. “This is an industry infused with good, genuine people,” she says, “and it made me realize that what I originally thought was ‘just a fun summer job’ could actually be my career.” To learn more about the program Melody works within and her passion for it, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xB7Fo9EDa0A

Melody’s enthusiasm in the water is matched by her passion on it. Among her most cherished teaching moments? Guiding a paddler to that breakthrough moment when rolling a kayak finally clicks.

Beyond the water, Melody is a dedicated advocate for the places she loves. She highlights the ACA’s partnership with Outdoor Alliance as work the entire paddling community should pay attention to — particularly efforts to protect the Boundary Waters and other treasured paddling destinations across the US. “We need to take small steps as often as we are able to protect the ecosystems where we paddle.”

Editor’s note: Melody’s concerns are timely. On April 27, the President signed H.J. Res. 140 into law, using the Congressional Review Act to revoke Public Land Order 7917 — stripping 20 years of protection from over 225,000 acres of federal land in the headwaters of the Boundary Waters and Voyageurs National Park, opening the door to sulfide-ore copper mining. The fight is not over: the ACA opposes this decision and supports Save the Boundary Waters in their effort to secure permanent wilderness protection for the BWCA.

Thank you, Melody, for your passion, your advocacy, and your commitment to the next generation of paddlers!