Melissa Shackelford

Melissa delights in the innovation and collaboration required to design and implement programs that inspire spiritual transformation. Committed to activating the gifts of those around her, she thrives on mobilizing teams, pioneering new ideas, and transforming creative energy into practical next steps.

Prior to joining Upper House as its third staff member in 2015, Melissa managed her brother’s art business, Inspiring Art by Alex, and together with her family, founded the nonprofit Alex Haunty’s Theater & Arts Fund, Inc., to create access to the arts for people with disabilities. Melissa holds a B.A. in Communication Arts and Literature Education (5-12) from Bethel University and is a third-year graduate of the Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry in Redding, CA. She also is a 2018 Alumna of Leadership Greater Madison and currently serves on the boards of Inspiring Hope Ministries and Alex Haunty’s Theater & Arts Fund, Inc.

Born and raised in Madison, WI, Melissa loves living in a four-season state close to family, supporting local coffee shops through her love of lattes, and being newly married. She and her husband, Peter G. Shackelford (U.S. Navy Veteran and the handsome man who makes her coffee every morning), can be found (in a non-pandemic world) playing beach volleyball in the summer, attending Overture concerts and APT performances, and eating at local restaurants.