Melanie R. Bridgeforth believes that the most powerful force for change is unlocking the full potential of women—and she has dedicated her entire career to making that a reality. In her home state of Alabama, where in 2019 an estimated 80,000 women were excluded from the workforce due to system barriers, she has spent decades advancing pro-family economic policy and systems change.
During her six-year stint as president and CEO of Women’s Foundation of Alabama (WFA), Bridgeforth transformed the once regional community-based foundation into an influential statewide legislative and philanthropic powerhouse. Under Bridgeforth’s leadership, the board, team, and supporters of the foundation doubled its grantmaking, now investing $1,000,000+ annually in a diverse network of grantee partner organizations across 40 Alabama counties. They stepped off the sidelines and into the game of public policy with astounding results to the tune of three defensive victories and six pro-women legislative wins, including the state’s first Equal Pay Statute, a $2.25 million cumulative state budget appropriation to partner and prepare women for in-demand careers, and the 2024 Child Care Tax Credit—an historic $67.5 million public investment in the critical infrastructure and workforce that keeps Alabama working. All of this while raising the transformative financial and social capital necessary to accelerate women’s economic opportunity.
Bridgeforth is now building on decades of movement-building in Alabama to scale her impact nationally. In 2025, she launched Bridgeforth, an impact-strategy consulting firm that engineers change alongside its client base at the intersection of policy, philanthropy, and organizational transformation—extending her fight for women’s economic power into a broader agenda. She in part credits her ability to help transform Women’s Foundation of Alabama, as well as her own success, to support from Voices for Healthy Kids.
“We couldn’t confine a program that was transforming women’s lives in Birmingham to one city—we had to take it statewide,” Bridgeforth says. “But scaling impact takes more than philanthropy. Voices for Healthy Kids understood that real, sustained change isn’t just about dollars or a single policy win. It’s about weaving funding and policy change together to build a durable infrastructure that lets you keep winning for the long haul.”
She says Voices for Healthy Kids has helped her redefine and reimagine the role that a funder could play in supporting organizations like hers.
“Not every funder has the appetite for public policy reform—to disrupt the systems that create barriers for so many families across the country. But Voices for Healthy Kids knows that to make real change, you have to confront the root causes,” she says. “What truly supported my leadership and our organization to flourish was that their investment went beyond financial capital to support movement and power building, resource mobilization, subject matter expertise, and technical assistance. In that way, I think they’ve turned organized philanthropy on its head.”
She says that the initial investment from Voices for Healthy Kids helped the Women’s Fund of Birmingham and later the Women’s Foundation of Alabama to build an institute that trained women how to advocate for themselves and their communities, to build power in their own communities, and to connect with leaders that were already moving and shaping change, but who just needed a couple of extra tools in the toolbox. It’s those tools, she says, that helped Bridgeforth and WFA lead the passage of seven legislative wins for women. Among them were the state’s first Equal Pay Statute, a $2.25 million appropriation to prepare Alabama women for in-demand careers, and the 2024 Child Care Tax Credit, which enhances quality and access to childcare, promoting women’s participation in the workforce.
Voices for Healthy Kids supported Bridgeforth to build and nurture relationships—both with policymakers and partners—that could move their advocacy over the finish line. These partners include 60 businesses and childcare providers across the state, from both ends of the political spectrum, who could make the case that childcare and equal pay keep Alabama women in the workforce.
“Getting lawmakers not just to support this legislation, but to champion it as part of a broader economic package for Alabama’s working families is a testament to how Women’s Foundation of Alabama built bridges with non-traditional players and partners,” Bridgeforth notes. “That kind of success requires more than dollars—it takes relationships and the flexibility to pursue what works. Support from strategic funders like Voices for Healthy Kids gives organizations they support the freedom and space to act strategically and win.”
Bridgeforth says Voices for Healthy Kids stands out because it invests directly in leaders like her, empowering them to focus on what they do best—and succeed.
“We need philanthropy to trust that we know better than anyone what our communities are facing,” she says. “Voices for Healthy Kids trusted us, invested in us, and together we delivered real results for women and families.”