Melvin D. Christensen began with real estate early on. When Mel was just two years old, he was gifted five acres on Christensen Road by his grandfather. One of five children, Mel moved from Condon, Oregon with his family in 1934 when he was just a toddler. Times were tough, so the family eventually ended up living in a garage they built on the deeded Corbett property. In 1940 the family moved to Gresham, where Mel graduated from high school. After being in the Naval Reserves his last year of high school, Mel then entered the Navy where he served five years. Coming back to an apartment in Gresham and working for Tektronix nearly 30 years, Mel wanted to get back to his "roots." In 1988, Mel purchased a manufactured home and put it on the land his grandfather had given him 54 years earlier! Each year Mel raises a full garden and gives much of the produce to the seniors in the Corbett community. He raises both vegetables and flowers and loves to try different varieties. The flowers that he grows are the favorite part of his property. This year Mel retired from 15 years of service as a Corbett volunteer firefighter at RFPD #14. Each morning of the week, Corbett Market is where Mel and friends share a cup of coffee. One of the few seniors who are "tech savvy," Mel does a great deal of volunteer work for both the Corbett Grange as well as the Historic Society. He can also be seen hanging out at the Grange on Mondays for lunch with the other seniors. As long as Mel continues to stay as involved and active as he has, we will have many more years to enjoy his company!
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Thanksgiving dinner at the Corbett Grange
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