Melissa was born November 11th 1985 to John and Janice Smigelsky, née Vavricek in Omaha, Nebraska.

Beginning in June 2007, Melissa will be spending 6 month in Pietermartizburg, South Africa doing an internship with the Pietermartizburg Agency for Christian Social Awareness (PACSA) through the HNGR Program at Wheaton College.