We got our first glimpse of Michelle’s story when we met her in the fall of 2008 as a contestant on Season 6 of NBC’s hit reality weight loss show,The Biggest Loser Families. As her story unfolded, the pain and burden she carried squarely on her shoulders from her parents divorce was more than apparent and the viewing audience at home instantly felt a deep and powerful connection with Michelle.

But Michelle’s story began long before the cameras ever began to roll for the taping of the Biggest Loser. Her story began at the age of 18 when a phone call from her mother informing her of the decision she had made to leave Michelle’s father brought michele to her knees. Feeling overwhelmingly responsible and broken beyond belief, Michelle made the decision to love her mother from a distance and began using food to cope with the emotional loss of the family unit she once knew.

For six years Michelle and her mother didn’t communicate until her father suggested Michelle audition for The Biggest Loser with her mother, Renee. On the show, we saw Michelle fight to shed not only the physical weight she carried from the pain of her parents divorce but also the emotional weight she had tried to keep hidden behind her trademark perfect smile. By show’s end, Michelle had not only emerged the winner of her season, she and her mother were successful at taking important steps to mend their broken relationship.

Michelle credits her faith in God for her ability to emerge a stronger woman, forever changed by the circumstances of her life, but not defined by them. She now travels the country sharing her story with others who have connected with Michelle in such a strong way. Michelle returned to Dallas after the show ended and eventually married now husband, Micah in the summer of 2009.

Michelle has been featured in numerous magazines, TV shows, including Ellen and the Today Show and was honored to be asked to take part in the Spring 2009, ‘I am Second” campaign. She released her first book about her story and was a featured speaker on the Women of Faith Tour in 2010. When Michelle is not traveling the country sharing the story of her journey of faith and healing, she enjoys spending time with her husband Micah. She is involved in several charities across the country, including grassroots advocacy for the American Heart Association.