Shortly after her marriage to hotelier Edwin Kirkeby in 1935, the couple moved to Chicago where Melba participated in several golf tournaments and won many trophies.
Husband was the manager of the Gotham Hotel and Hampshire House in New York City while also serving as vice president of the Kirkeby Hotel chain. She lived at the Gotham in a suite especially decorated to her tastes.
Made her debut in society at the annual coronation ball of Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla on the night of February 9, 1932, in Tampa, Florida. She was escorted to the event by her future husband Edwin O. Kirkeby. Sheila Elliott and Lucille Trice also attended.