Radio Connection Graduate Gets Her Own Radio Show!

Have you ever had a dream? Dr. Mary Stubbs-Cummings has had several. Luckily for her, she has managed to make her aspirations work together in a way that fulfills her and the people she helps.

Years ago, Dr. Stubbs-Cummings received a Phd in Counseling Psychology. She coupled that degree with her Christian perspective and formed Life Work Corporation, a group of Marraige and Family Therapists.

But Mary had another love: Radio.

“I was interested in putting that together with Life Work’s goal of reaching outside the business, to people who would never walk into a therapist’s office or a church to get help,” she explains.

“So I was looking on the Internet, where I found Entertainment Connection’s Radio Broadcasting program. I contacted [Entertainment Connection president] Jimi [Petulla], and he was wonderful,” Mary enthuses. “He got right back to me.”

“Jimi worked and worked to try to find a Christian orignization where I could do an internship, and he discovered John Rorvik, who ran the radio station at Wheaton College,” she says. “I couldn’t have gotten a better situation! John is a terrific teacher and mentor. He did a fantastic job at teaching me all the ins and outs of radio.”

When she graduated from Recording, Radio, Film Connection, Mary started to search for a way to combine radio with her counseling skills, and ran across Pastor Fred DeJong, who was thinking along the same lines.

They turned to her mentor John Rorvik, who advised them what they’d have to do to bring their vision to life. Based on his advice, the two approached WYLL 1160, a Christian radio station in Chicago, Illinois, with the idea.

“WYLL said they had nothing like that (a pastor and family counselor doing a program together) on specific topics with a biblical base,” Mary recalls. “They were thrilled to have us!”
That was more than a year ago. Since then, Career Connection alumnus Dr. Mary Stubbs-Cummings and her partner Pastor Fred DeJong have been appearing on their own radio show at 3:30 each Sunday afternoon on WYLL in Chicago.

Sometimes dreams do come true!