Melinda is a California Native, born in Westminster where she spent all her growing-up years. She went to Ocean View High School and graduated in 1990. She studied cosmetology at Golden West College and graduated a year later with a hairdressing license. She worked at Carlton Hair from 1991 until 1995. She visited PNG in 1994 for a month's holiday and that was when she first felt called as a missionary. Immediately after she came home from her holiday in PNG she started the paperwork as a short-term assistant (STA) with Wycliffe. She went to Quest for Wycliffe training in 1995. The next year she quit her job and went to Bible College at Calvary Chapel Bible College in Lake Arrow Head for one year. She studied teacher training for early childhood education. At the end of that year she left for PNG as a preschool teacher and served in Ukarumpa for two years. While in PNG she went to Nissan Island and helped a translation team with literacy. This is where she felt called to do literacy work with nationals. She went on furlough for six months in 1998 to raise more support and to do doctrinal statement for membership with Wycliffe. In 1999 she left for Melbourne, Australia for a year of literacy training. In November 1999 she graduated and went back to PNG. Unfortunately at that time my plans changed. Melinda and Kurt were married in September 2000 and that pretty much finished up being able to do literacy work! They were stuck at Ukarumpa due to Kurt's jobs so she helped out in the schools until Nadia was born in 2002 when Melinda became a stay at home mom.
Kurt and Melinda met in August 1998 while Melinda was on furlough and Kurt was preparing to leave for PNG. At that time, Melinda already knew Kurt's Parents, David and Jackie from Ukarumpa. Kurt, along with his sister Kristi, came over from Arizona to see Melinda. They went out for a few hours then met again at Kurt's cousin's house a month later. Kurt left for PNG in 1998 and Melinda went to see him off. Melinda went back to PNG on her school break in June for the high school graduation at Ukarumpa and started hanging out with Kurt again. Their relationship started on their first motorcycle ride and they started dating officially July 15th 1999. At that time they realized David and Jackie Scorza had already arranged our marriage! There are positives about arranged marriages. Melinda left for Melbourne for the last four months of school. During that time they got to know each other well by email and phone calls. Kurt was faithful in emailing Melinda every day. They believe they were blessed to have this time. Melinda came back to Ukarumpa November 22, 1999. On December 2 Kurt and Melinda and his parents left for Lae for a week's holiday. Kurt proposed to Melinda there on December 3rd and she happily accepted. They came back on December 5th and Kurt called Melinda's parents to ask her dad's permission on the 6th. They were married on September 9, 2000.
Kurt and Melinda have two wonderful children. Nadia who was born in Cairns Australia on June 7, 2002 and Isabella who was born in Cairns Australia on June 12, 2005
Kurt and Melinda will be leaving PNG June of 2006 for a new assignment (still with Wycliffe Bible Translators) in Temecula Ca where Kurt will take up the role of Facilities manager there. Melinda is ooking forward to this move to Temecula as she hopes to be able to be more involved again.
