Melanie Green’s heart beats for the families she serves.
It beats for the parents who receive housing resources and public assistance thanks in part to her efforts.
It beats for children able to eat a meal and wear warm clothes provided by one of the Family and Community Resource Centers she oversees.
But that Green’s heart beats at all is no small feat.
Green, administrator of Evergreen Public Schools’ Family and Community Resource Center Program, was born with Tetralogy of Fallot, a congenital heart defect. Among other problems, Green’s heart has a hole between the wall separating the two lower chambers.
That means oxygenated blood in the left ventricle can mix with the non-oxygenated blood in the right, causing severe medical complications. Green had her first open-heart surgery at 5. A second at 14. She also had bone cancer at the age of 11 and spent 13 months in chemotherapy.
But it was the third surgery at 26 that put Green on the path to public service.
In January 2005, Green had open-heart surgery to replace a valve and conduit in her heart. After telling her that her odds of a successful surgery were low, doctors at Oregon Health and Science University referred her to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
The surgery was a success. Green survived.
“Our family came together and didn’t accept what was being told to us,” she said. “Throughout your whole life, you have to advocate for yourself.”
The years since have included reminders of the fragility of life.
On Feb. 18, 2011, Green went into cardiac arrest. Her husband resuscitated her as 911 dispatchers coached him through CPR until first responders could arrive. She spent several days in a medically induced coma, with a survival rate of about 10 percent. Her family didn’t know if she was going to wake up, and if she’d be the same person if she did.
“I did, thankfully,” Green said.
Oh yeah, she added, then there was the kidney cancer doctors discovered when she was in the hospital after cardiac arrest, because “why not,” the now-38-year-old joked.
Today, Green receives on-going care for her heart condition at Kaiser Permanente and OHSU, and a pacemaker keeps her heart beating normally throughout the day. She’s also an active fundraiser at the Portland-Metro Congenital Heart Walk. Last year, her team raised $3,108 to support the Children’s Heart Foundation and the Adult Congenital Heart Association. She was the top team and individual fundraiser.
Green credits her survival to her family’s resiliency. She said that’s reflected in the work she does helping homeless and low-income families build their own networks of support.
“It’s led me this whole time in this direction of advocating for others that don’t have a voice,” she said.
New path
Green spent the months of her recovery after her third heart surgery considering her place in life, what she wanted to accomplish and where her degree in social sciences might take her. In October, she started an AmeriCorps term as the family involvement coordinator at Pioneer Elementary School in the Evergreen district.
“I’ve had the opportunity at a young age to really reflect on life, what’s important, what I value,” she said.
Green spent five years working in Evergreen Public Schools campuses, then took a brief hiatus to work for Big Brothers Big Sisters Columbia Northwest from 2010 to 2012. She returned in late 2012 to launch the district’s first Family and Community Resource Center at Silver Star Elementary School.
“The right set of circumstances led me there,” she said.
On the tail end of the Great Recession, Green found students and families more in need than ever. At the time, about 59.2 percent of the school’s students were on free or reduced-price meals, compared with 47.2 percent of the students districtwide.
“They’re tired, they’re hungry, their brains can’t learn,” she said.
That made Green’s job all the more important. Family and Community Resource Centers provide a wide net of services for families, and are continuing to grow as the needs change. Families are able to sign up for a coveted spot on Section 8 housing voucher lotteries with a referral from one of the centers, for example. They provide food, school supplies and toiletries to families who need them. There’s access to job training and volunteer opportunities, as well as referrals to public and legal assistance.
District Superintendent John Deeder said Green ran with her new responsibilities through her promotion to administrator of all the family resource centers in June 2014.
“We wouldn’t have the program in any way, shape or form without her,” he said. “She’s the leader of the program, and she started it.”
Despite an otherwise improving economy, conditions have only worsened when it comes to housing. More students are homeless now than they were five years ago, with 766 students as of Feb. 9. experiencing homelessness. That number was 799 at the same time last year, and at the end of the 2011-2012 school year, 604 students were homeless. Districtwide, the number of students receiving free and reduced-price lunches has remained steady, with 47 percent of students receiving the support.
Green charges that the Portland-metro area’s rent crisis is pivotal in so many families’ challenges. The Department of Housing and Urban Development puts Clark County’s fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment at $1,208. Just five years ago, it was $891.
“These families don’t have the additional resources to pay an additional $300 each month,” Green said of rapidly increasing rents. “It creates a spiral for these families.”
Big help
Late last year, Green saw a bucket list wish fulfilled.
She received a giant check.
DiscoverOrg in November donated 3,000 pounds of shoes, diapers, clothing and toiletries, as well as a giant check for $40,000 to Evergreen Public Schools.
“It wouldn’t even fit in my car,” Green said.
Donations such as DiscoverOrg’s will impact the lives of many children and their families, Green said.
“These funds will allow us to respond to basic and emergency needs as they arise,” she said. “Clothing, shoes, utility assistance, glasses, housing needs, and personal items to name a few.”
Evergreen Public Schools also works with local nonprofits, including Share Vancouver and Friends of the Carpenter, as well as private corporations and churches to provide services and donations to families. Green is responsible for coordinating those relationships, and also works with Evergreen Faith-Based Coffee to share information about families and children in need.
It’s a big puzzle keeping so many resources straight. Green admitted much of her day is spent on the computer, firing off emails and keeping track of things. District officials credit Green’s dogged efforts to market the program for its widespread community success.
And others are recognizing her, as well. Green was nominated for the General George C. Marshall Public Leadership Award in 2014, and last year received both the Educational Service District 112 Classified Employee of the Year award and the Washington State Classified Employee of the Year award. She was also one of the Vancouver Business Journal’s Accomplished and Under Forty.
Cindy Christensen, who until recently was Green’s supervisor as the manager of Title 1 programs, praised Green’s initiative, dedication and organizational skills.
“She’s able to break down those barriers and connect with the families, and also connect with the educators and the community and get the resources that are needed,” she said.
Christensen, who now manages the district’s English Language Learner program, said Green is invested and dedicated to supporting families in poverty.
“She really has a big heart,” she said.
