Melissa English

My name is Melissa Kathleen English. I live in Northside. I have lived there since 2002 in the same house. I've lived in Cincinnati since 1992. I was born and raised in Evanston, Indiana, down river from Cincinnati. River culture is real, and a seminal part of my conception of home.

I would say my strongest focal point for family is the way I was introduced to my Mom's family, and how they made time for me and nurtured me. You know, I love my Dad's family, too, very much. They divorced when I was pretty young. And I saw my Mom's family more. My maternal grandmother provided childcare for me before school. My dad’s mom was a very different grandmother than my maternal grandmother. She didn’t cook a lot but when she did it was amazing, and I hope that is part of my DNA.