WELCOME TO BENZIE COUNTY CENTRAL SCHOOLS FEATUERD FRIDAY
ALUMNI. Today, we would like to
recognize, class of 1998 alumni, Christal Frost.
Christal Frost (born Christal Franks) grew up in Interlochen
and Beulah, graduating from Benzie Central High School in 1998. During her time
at Benzie Central, Christal was actively involved in the choir and musicals,
playing the lead role of Laurie in the 1998 Spring Production of “Oklahoma.”
Although music played a very big part in Christal’s high school experience, she
was also involved in Odyssey of the Mind, with her team taking second place at
High School State Finals in 1997. Christal’s favorite part of her day, however,
was BCTV’s broadcasting class. Christal says her favorite teacher was Mr.
Gehring, adding that she spent many lunches in his classroom even when she
didn’t have to. Christal was adopted by her step-father shortly after high
school, marking the first of many name changes over the years, although, she
always goes back to Frost in the end… 😊
Since her time at Benzie Central, Christal attended
Northwestern Michigan College with a focus on both Early Childhood Development
and, in later years, Non-Profit management. Christal served as an AmeriCorps
Volunteer from 2001-2002, where she was assigned to work with at risk kids at
Boys & Girls Clubs of Grand Traverse. It is not an exaggeration to say that
the moment Christal walked through the doors of the Club, she was in love.
After completing her year of service, she continued with Boys and Girls Clubs,
working as a Site Director for Blair Elementary School, Program Director at the
Suttons Bay chapter and eventually, serving as the Director of Operations for
the Clubs as a whole. During her time at Boys & Girls Clubs, Christal was
named the Staff Member of the Year and graduated from the Chamber of Commerce’s
“Leadership Grand Traverse.” Christal has often said that if the Clubs hadn’t
closed due to lack of funding, she would have been there for the rest of her
life. But, unfortunately that did happen in 2006. At that time, Christal was
experiencing a lot of change. She had two little ones under the age of five and
was going through a divorce. Her resilient spirit kicked in as she realized she
just needed a job to survive. That’s when Christal found radio. She was hired
as a sales consultant for Modern Rock the Zone. But, sales were not in her wheelhouse.
Actually, in her words, she was “the worst sales person on the planet.” But,
for some reason, Management liked her attitude and decided to give her a go at
Promotions. Christal loved this move—promotions gave her a chance to be
creative, and she was good at it. She continued in Promotions for several
months until the Zone’s morning show host asked her to sit in with him on a
random Monday. So, she did; getting up at an ungodly hour to be funny on the
radio. For four hours the two of them laughed and made jokes, and, at the end
of the show, the station’s manager made it official- Mizz Christal was to be a
permanent part of the Rock and Roll Freakshow.
Over the years, there were several changes and even tougher
times, but in 2012, Christal started working at WTCM Radio. She was working as
a Producer for the very popular Ron Jolly and, in 2013, she was given her own
time slot and show. The Christal Frost Show was born. Guests have commented
that Christal has a natural ability to bring out the story in every situation.
She is naturally inquisitive and genuinely curious about most everything—a
quality Christal said landed her in trouble in high school. Starting Monday,
May 7th, Christal will begin a new journey. In addition to her
current show on WTCM NewsTalk 580, Christal will join Mike Sinclair as the
co-host of the WTCM Morning Show. The two radio veterans will take the place of
the legendary Jack O’Malley; and, although filling his shoes will be impossible,
Christal says, she’ll wear extra socks to make it happen.
Christal is also actively involved in her local community; a
Board Member for Parallel 45 Professional Theatre Company in Traverse City and
also serving on the Board of Governors for the National Cherry Festival. Christal is also the founder of the CherryT
Ball Drop New Year’s Eve event for charity, an event that has raised over
$100,000 for local food banks and children’s charities since 2009. That event
is now a part of the National Cherry Festival family, a merger Christal helped
to orchestrate earlier this year. You can see Christal involved in several
other organizations and events including the Athena Awards, Rotary Show, Father
Fred Frostbite Food Drive, Signature Chefs Auction, and Paper Angels Campaign
for Child and Family Services. She is also one of the founding story tellers
from the very popular storytelling group, “Here: Say Storytelling.”
Above all else, though, Christal is a fierce advocate for
children. Serving as a volunteer for the Traverse Bay Children’s Advocacy
Center, Christal has shared her own story of surviving child sexual abuse as a
keynote speaker at the Circle of Friends luncheon and even put on her dancing
shoes with Swingshift and the Stars to raise over $75,000 for the TBCAC in
2016. Christal uses her radio show as a platform to share the vital message of
sexual abuse prevention and intervention with a monthly segment featuring
educational topics that will teach every adult the knowledge they need to keep
children safe. Christal has been recognized for her professional work and
service to her community, being named amongst the Top 40 Under 40 Leaders in
Northern Michigan for the past five years in a row.
Aside from work and local community involvement, Christal
absolutely adores her family. Her husband, Jordan, also works at the radio
station and owns a DJ company, Mr. Music DJ’s and Event Services. Her son, Trey
is a Junior in High School and has enjoyed continued success as a hip hop
artist performing under the name DubleU. Her son, Logan, is in the 8th
grade and enjoys sports, comedy and watching and making YouTube videos.
Christal shared, “Thank you so much for choosing to
highlight me! I am humbled and incredibly grateful. I would love to be more
involved with the Benzie community, and plan to make that a part of my focus in
the coming years!”
Christal, we are extremely #OneBENZIE proud of your strength
and determination. You are an inspiration to many and a beautiful example of
overcoming and giving back. We look
forward to following you on the WTCM FM morning show. Congratulations and continued success and
happiness!
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