Welcome to Central Ohio, Kristyn Hartman

As part of my ongoing plan to introduce you to the people I've had the privilege to cross paths with, I would like to use this post to welcome to Central Ohio the newest member of the WBNS 10TV family - Kristyn Hartman.

It was announced back in mid-February that Kristyn was being hired to fill the evening anchor spot being vacated in May by Andrea Cambern, the award-winning, beloved newscaster who will be stepping down after working at the station since 1991. Being a fan of Andrea and the entire 10TV family through various interactions both via social media and in real life meetings, I was curious to get to know more about Kristyn, especially since the bio in the release about her hiring mentioned that she was a runner. I looked up her e-mail address on the website of the station she was currently at in Chicago and dropped her a quick note just to welcome her to Central Ohio and 10TV and give her a standing open invitation to join the Mount Vernon Running Buddies any time she wanted to.

Imagine my surprise when an hour and a half later an e-mail popped up in my inbox from Kristyn thanking me for taking the time to reach out to her. Here, on what was probably a pretty exciting yet busy day in her professional life, she took the time to respond to a total stranger. In the meantime, I had seen that one of my friends had started following her on Facebook so I checked out her page and noticed that she was also responding to all the well wishes from people in Central Ohio there, too. It was a great first impression for me as she was already connecting with what would be her viewing audience.

After that brief interaction to welcome Kristyn, I honestly didn't give it much more thought. I knew that she would be coming on board at the station sometime in May with a first on-air anchor date set for June. Well, imagine my surprise last week when my cell phone rang with an Illinois number and the voice on the other end was hers. She was calling to say that she wanted to take me up on the offer to come up and check out Mount Vernon and meet some of my friends. She said that she had orientation all day on Monday which was her first day at 10TV and then was booked until Thursday morning so we scheduled to meet that day.

It was great to have the opportunity show her around the university where I work (Mount Vernon Nazarene University) and introduce her to some of my friends and co-workers. We also briefly saw part of the city of Mount Vernon and I introduced her to the mayor and representatives from the police department, the fire department, and the sheriff's office. Everyone commented about how down-to-earth and genuine she was and they all enjoyed meeting her. I think she was also impressed with what she learned about our community and MVNU.

During the time that my wife, Carla, and I walked with Kristyn around campus and then the time that I spent driving her around town, I really enjoyed getting to find out more about what Kristyn is all about and what her plans are heading into this new job. She told me about how excited she is to come to a station that is viewed from the outside as one of the best jobs in the business regardless of size. She has been blown away by the hospitality and welcome that she has already felt from Central Ohio. She spoke lovingly about different things relating to her and her husband of 20 years, Chris, as their relationship started on a college campus much like Carla's and mine did.

Kristyn spoke with great admiration about Andrea and all the amazing things that she has done in her role over the years. She feels a sense of responsibility to continue the great relationship with the community and charity organizations, but she also knows that you don't replace someone like Andrea or try to be her, and she is looking forward to connecting with people in her own way much like she did with me and the others who met her on Thursday. She is very much looking forward to making Columbus her home and getting to know the great people that make up Central Ohio. Who knows...you might be the next person to get a phone call from her saying she's coming to see you! It really wouldn't surprise me at all because she knows that everyone has a story to tell and she loves to hear those stories and meet the people behind them.

From what I understand, you will start seeing Kristyn doing stories as early as next week as she gets her feet wet locally first in the role of a reporter. Then, her first on-set anchor date is set for June 4 when she will start doing the 5, 6 and 11 p.m. news slots with Jerry Revish. You will want to check it out and welcome her into your homes.

For more information on Kristyn, you can check out her bio page on the 10TV website.