Melvin's birth name was Donald Hector McKenzie and his actual date of birth was February 26, 1911. He was born in what is now Thunder Bay, Ontario. His birth parents were William McKenzie and Edith Hutchinson (Hutchison) (Campbell). Despite the birth registration showing them as being married, however no marriage records in Ontario have been found. He had a biological brother John and the marriage date on his birth registration is different, so we’ve come to the conclusion that the couple may have been in a common-law relationship rather than a legally registered marriage. Melvin's birth mother, Edith was “illegitimate” and her mother’s surname was Hutchinson or Hutchison although the putative father’s surname was Campbell. William McKenzie and Edith Hutchison are buried in Wilkie, Saskatchewan. They also had two daughters born after Melvin. Wilda and Jessie. Prior to Melvin’s death, he actually had a chance to meet his biological mother as well as his two sisters.
His foster parents were Thomas Bell and Duneda Hutchison. Birth mother, Edith and Duneda were cousins. The story goes that Edith and William were in dire straits financially after Dad was born and Duneda and her husband offered to take Dad in. The Bell's may have been living somewhere in Manitoba. They were at least were married in Manitoba. When the Bell's returned to Ontario with Melvin as an infant, they passed him off as their own child and when the birth parents, Edith and William tried to reclaim him at a later date, the Bells refused and threatened them. This information came from his sister, Wilda, who was born in Saskatchewan.

Melvin's brother, John had been sent to live with a couple of spinster aunts who lived somewhere north of Goderich on a rural property. His records from WWII show his next of kin as being Donald Hector McKenzie of Goderich, therefore John McKenzie was obviously unaware that the Thomas & Duneda (Hutchison) Bell had changed Donald’s name to Melvin James Bill and his date of birth of his baptismal date.

At the age of 22, Melvin met Winnie Marsh through a mutual friend. They were engaged about six months later and married in June 1935 in the midst of the Depression. They lived in Goderich for about a year and a half before moving to Nile where they managed the general store until the outbreak of World War II. Melvin then joined the motor transport division at Sky Harbour as a mechanic, and his wife began working for an estate lawyer. They moved back to Goderich, and lived on St. Vincent Street from 1939 to 1955 when they bought their house at 97 East Street where they lived until Melvin's death in 1978 and his wife for many years afterwards.