Melody, a mom, grandmother, devoted friend, and successful businesswoman, grew up on the original Embrace campus in Selma. She credits the love and guidance of her caretaker, Louis Porter, and her house parents, Dot and Hugh Busby, for instilling in her a deep, abiding sense of faith, grace, and resilience by sharing the love of Jesus with her as a child during her formative years.
Melody recently shared an experience that happened when she was a young girl in Selma on the campus. She waited daily to see her half-brother, only to learn he had been taken back by their mother—while she remained behind. Ms. Porter, unable to soften the painful truth, brought Melody into the kitchen. She taught her to make biscuits, showing that you can share the love of Christ through simple acts of comfort. This experience taught Melody that small, tangible actions such as baking, reading together, or taking walks can bring solace in life's hardest moments.
Today, Melody honors those who shaped her by supporting Embrace's mission of providing homes, healing and hope. When words fail, she encourages others to offer comfort through meaningful gestures—like making a warm pan of biscuits. Please enjoy Ms. Porter's biscuit recipe enclosed, a simple way to ease a heavy heart, nourish the hungry or share kindness with a friend.
Readers always have a favorite author, but stories are written in many ways. Hebrews 12:2 calls Jesus “the author and finisher of our faith,” and Psalm 139 tells us “All of your days were written before you were born.” Jenna Nerstad of Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, could never have imagined what she now sees as her “perfect story.”
