Every morning we ride our bikes with our son to school. Sometimes we skate, or even walk. You probably see us as you drive by and think we’re nuts, or that have too much time on our hands. I see you pass by and wonder why you haven’t figured out our secret!

We’re fortunate enough to live close by our son’s elementary school, one of Brevard’s A+ institutions. Actually we moved to our home specifically because of its proximity to the school: one road, and a straight shot.

Recently I have had the dubious privilege of possessing a set of school photographs taken of me during the mid 1970s.

For many, the mere mention of that decade evokes memories of bad hair, fashion and music, along with a general drift as to the country’s focus and direction. For me, gazing at the photos, I am utterly dismayed by the epitome of geekdom I see. Hair growing like wild weeds along the side of a mountain…a shirt with cutesy little drawings on it…glasses that had been held together by some version of 70s duct tape…overall, just horror, horror, horror.

Melissa Delker is the Associate Pastor at Melbourne’s First United Methodist Church, the red brick building with the golden steeple on New Haven, just next to historic downtown. She is a wonderful person, in the pulpit and at Celebrations Café, the church’s informal gathering place. We caught up with her hectic schedule and asked her to talk about how she balances her church life with family.