Jenn with 2 Ns (First Tuesday of the month, 3:00 - 4:00 p.m.)

Jenn Melby-Kelley is a Mankato native, a graduate of Women’s Studies and Sociology at Minnesota State University - Mankato, a second-generation entrepreneur, a Mankato City Council member representing Ward 4 for her third term, lead singer/songwriter for the band Sister Gin, one of the area’s most visible LGBTQ leaders, and a well-known local advocate for arts, music, small business, entrepreneurship and positive social change.

For the past 18 years, Jenn has worked tirelessly to grow her business, The Coffee Hag, into the successful coffee shop and cultural force that it is today. Against challenging economic tides, Jenn’s leadership has grown the Coffee Hag from a struggling independent to a thriving, popular, fast-paced establishment that remains true to its roots, exemplifies social responsibility and provides, in her words, "a place where people can find community and feel good about who they are the moment they walk through the door."

Jenn’s work at the Coffee Hag has earned her many awards and accolades, including a Martin Luther King, Jr. Pathfinder Business Award (a recognition for businesses that strive for equal treatment, human rights and nonviolence), several Best of Mankato awards from the MNSU Reporter and the Free Press in Mankato, the 2012 Mankato Pridefest Dedication, a Lavender Community Award,  the 2016 SBA Woman-owned Small Business of the Year for Minnesota,  2016 Greater Mankato Distinguished Business Award and the 2019 YWCA Distinctive Business Award.

Jenn participates regularly in entrepreneurial panels and is a popular a keynote speaker, commentator and performer at community and business events. 

She lives in Mankato with her wife Anna, and their yorky, Patterson,