Crystal Pruitt Birthday Book

GLAMOROUS SPECIAL BIRTHDAY EDITION |

MARCH 27

CRYSTAL PRUITT TURNS 50!

St. Petersburg’s most glamorous woman turns 50 and celebrates her milestone by giving an exclusive interview

SPECIAL REPORT

The Birthday Celebrations!

All the detail and exclusive photos

ALSO

• She is an accomplished PR professional • Member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. • Loves to shop, ski and play golf

Friends & Family Pay Tribute

PLUS 50

Bucket List Items

Good Things About Turning 50

“Mom, Thank you for your support with me and Nia. We love you. May God continue to pour his abundance, grace, love and peace and bless you with many more years to celebrate. I’m proud of you and you motivate me to keep striving for excellence.”

Love. Cebrina Douse

“I have enjoyed our time together.

I cherish our many talks about elevating forward. Keep being the blessing that you are.”

Love you. Joi Davies

“Crystal, we enjoyed the 50th Birthday Party. May God bless you with many, many more. Stay sweet.”

Cousin Peggy Shannon

“Dear Soror Crystal, Now that you are 50 girl live it up!

Do you and enjoy life.”

Love ya. Soror Toni Fort

“Chris, I have always looked up to you. You are a wonderful cousin, mother and friend. I hope this year is as fab 50 as you! I love you so much. Happy Birthday.”

Love Kontonia and Meleke.

“Always follow your dreams, reach for the sky and you sure will fall among the stars! Happy Birthday and welcome to the fabulous 50 club!”

Love you. Janice Howard.

Crystal L. Pruitt March 27

50th

Birthday Celebration

A Family Affair

A loving and supportive family, a spiritual foundation and a resolve to succeed. This is the formula that has made Crystal Pruitt who she is and why she is better than ever – at 50!

By Melody McDowell

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. "Perpetuating a legacy of sisterhood and service"

Crystal is an active member of Zeta Upsilon Omega Chapter and served as Chapter President from 2011 - 2014. Throughout her life, she admired members of the sorority, including her own family members, teachers and mentors who embodied all of the qualities of what a women should be – poised, elegant and scholarly.

Reaching a Milestone with Gratitude and a Record of Triumph

By Melody McDowell Her journey to 50 began on March 27, 1966 when Crystal Vernae Lilly was born to Jeanette Frances Taylor and Parris Lilly, Jr. Her mother worked in insurance sales and her father, now deceased, was a bus supervisor for Pinellas County Schools.

Her parents always encouraged her to live fearless and strive to be the best.

The woman she is today is also a product of three determined grandmothers: Her mother’s mother, Josephine, her father’s mother, Nanny and her great grandmother Charity. They were united in their respect for higher learning and in their mission to make sure Crystal was a beneficiary of an outstanding education.

What was truly remarkable about her grandmothers is that they were uneducated and cleaned house for “white folks” as domestics. Undaunted by their station in life, they dreamed that their children and grandchildren would do better, soar higher, achieve more. Education was the key. In Crystal, they saw the realization of their dreams.

Reflecting on the role they played in her life, Crystal says: “A lot of strong, influential black women helped me to be the person I am today.“ Inspired by their encouragement and outpouring of love, Crystal also embraced education and recognized its power.

To make sure she received a top-flight education, everyone was “ALL IN!” Her parents worked two jobs to pay the tuition for St. Paul’s Catholic elementary school she attended up to sixth grade. Her grandmother Nanny worked for the monsignor at the school so, she was able to offer guidance and monitor her progress.

After graduating from grammar school in 1980, she attended high school at the prestigious Lakewood “Hollywood” High in St. Petersburg. It was renowned because it was desegregated and a preponderance of middle class African Americans attended the school. What made it also unique was how the students comported themselves: The girls wore high heels and carried briefcases. The young men wore ties -- even bow ties -- with their blazers.

It was within this environment that Crystal flourished and excelled.

She was active in an array of activities and her leadership was displayed through her involvement with the high school newspaper and as a member of the yearbook staff. She exhibited her athletic prowess as a runner on the girls’ track team, The Trackettes. A respected leader even in high school she won the admiration of her peers as she was elected student government president in her senior year.

Despite her multitude of talents that could take her in any direction, she fell in love with writing. It was in this area – and in the related disciplines of public relations and marketing -- that she found her passion and her calling.

Her journalism teacher took her under her wing and taught Crystal the fundamentals of crafting words. With a natural flair, she refined her writing and developed her own signature style.

Others, including the prestigious Poynter Institute for Media Studies in St. Petersburg, noticed her talent. She was among a select group chosen to intern there. A veritable laboratory for cultivating talent, she came under the influence of the renowned Dr. Roy Peter Clark and Vivian Rouson – both veterans and legends in the field of journalism. They nurtured black students interested in writing. Under the tutelage of these two legendary journalists, Crystal spent the summer writing assignments and gaining top-notch training.

With her career path set, Crystal received a journalism scholarship to attend St. Petersburg College from the St. Petersburg Times, the major news outlet for the city. She majored in business and later transferred to Eckerd College in St.

Petersburg and graduated in 2001. Soon after graduating from High School, she was hired by the Times.

She began a remarkable journey there as she served as a Copy Clerk followed by Editorial Assistant.

Her life was not all business. In 1988, while out at a nightclub partying with friends, she met Sam Pruitt. Taken by her beauty and charm, he asked her to dance and asked for her number. A love connection was made. Recalling their courtship, she said, his kindness and sense of adventure attracted her.

They dated for eight years and on August 26, 1995, were married.

When she became his wife, her Uncle Lige said, “Today you marry your best friend.” Crystal says that is a true statement.

“He’s the first person I go to – good or bad. He is the one I share everything with and he is my confidante. We travel together and he even accompanies me when I have business. We do a lot together. He’s been a big supporter of anything I do.

He’s a great husband and great father. I respect him and value the things that he’s taught me along the way.”

With a strong foundation of love and mutual respect, they settled into life as a couple. They share a passion for skiing, which cemented their bond. For Crystal, being in sync with the mountains while skiing allows her to bond with God. “What I love about skiing is going to mountains and to looking across at God’s Country,” she says, “It’s spiritually uplifting.”

Together, the couple have four children: daughter Erica, Cebrina and sons James and Jerrod. Today, they are young adults and each has a child, including Jayden, who lives with Sam and Crystal. She says Jayden “keeps them on their toes. With Crystal and Sam’s loving guidance, the children have launched their own journey and charted their own paths.

In 1989, her career took a zigzag path when she made a decision to serve in the United States Airforce. Crystal sacrificed many months training to be a radio operator for a medical evacuation unit at MacDill Airforce base in Tampa. “My military training and experience is something I will always remember. It’s one of my greatest accomplishments.”

Crystal later earned an insurance license and worked at Earl Gainey Allstate Insurance agency. A few years later she landed a job at Jabil Circuit where she learned about quality control. This made her more conscious of incorporating quality control standards into her work. After these short-lived positions, she pivoted to the field of Public Relations.

While she would find her life’s calling in PR, it wasn’t always smooth going.

After serving in her first two positions, she hit a wall. She couldn’t seem to get “unstuck” from that place. Her promotions leveled off and she seemed to professionally plateau.

She turned to her best friend – Sam Pruitt – for advice. He suggested that she enhance her profile and marketing value by going back to school.

Following his advice, she earned a MBA in Business Administration from Nova Southeastern University.

That academic upgrade propelled her and gave her the confidence to shift into Public Relations. In this field, she could maximize her writing skills while leveraging her newfound knowledge of how to execute a campaign that would yield positive outcomes.

She was attracted to PR because of its power in driving messages and influencing outcomes.

“I like the opportunity to educate and increase public awareness.

I also like using the media as a platform to help spread the message.”

The skill sets required as a PR

maven also were broader and the always-eagerto-learn Crystal found that to be a lure. ”In PR, you get to be a little bit more well-rounded by using strategies to effectively manage your organization’s brand across multiple platforms.”

And, so her career trajectory was centered on her various skills that embraced PR. In 2001, she was hired by the Pinellas County Health Department to work on a violence prevention campaign. As part of the execution, she conceived a social marketing initiative with the goal to look for behavior outcomes. She analyzed data and factors like drop out rates and bullying as they relate to violence. She also did community outreach and crated powerful messages.

Later, while working with the Pinellas County government in 2003, she added to her skills by working on government TV. She learned to script stories for government TV and became very proficient at producing shows. Under her production credits, she had a number of shows in her queue. For five years, she performed in this role and excelled.

In 2006 she accepted a similar position with Sarasota County, where she served until 2013.

Recognizing her leadership savvy, she was eventually promoted to interim Director of

Communications where she was charged with running the entire operation and managing a 45-member staff. Always eager to learn, she mastered graphics and design where she expanded her skills, capabilities and marketing profile. In this critical role, she interacted with board members and mastered the delicate art of hierarchical diplomacy.

She is currently Public Relations Strategist with Hillsborough County where she consults with department heads and helps the County develop communications plans.

The work ethic she’s used to excel professionally is the same energy and zeal she has taken in working with Alpha Kappa Alpha.

She has seen her star rise as she was appointed Region Information Officer in 2010 and in 2014, was appointed to the Sorority’s International Communications committee. In this capacity, she helps create the Sorority’s messaging and has major input in AKA’s branding strategy.

Career wise, entrepreneurship is something she aspires to pursue. She believes she has the fortitude, will and combination of talents to realize that dream of having her own business.

Her plans for the Sorority are to help with strategic planning and to work on programs that are critical to the betterment of the community.

Outside of her sorority and professional pursuits, she is looking forward to reaching the halfcentury mark. This is also time to enjoy life. She hopes to savor some of her favorite pastimes: going to the movies, shopping, vacationing, doting on her children and grandchildren and spending more time with her best friend, confidante and love of her life -- Sam. She is introspective about her life and her purpose, “Now that I’m turning 50, it clicked for me that I’m in a different place. I’m older and wiser and I’ve accomplished a lot against all odds. When people talk about what’s possible, I get teary eyed. I think about my grandparents who were uneducated and how they sacrificed so I could be a vessel to realize their hopes for me.

So, I represent their dream and I stand on their shoulders.”

At 50, Crystal has been gifted with a good life and has been successful in achieving a work/life balance. Being intensely spiritual, she is mindful of the role prayer plays in living out her purpose.

“I firmly believe that there’s a higher power and whenever we’re faced with anything, take it to God in prayer and He always works it out.”

This has been a prescription that has worked out for Crystal as it mirrors her life of love, giving, gratitude and accomplishment.

Living Life like it’s Golden

A Toast to the Birthday Girl

Turning 50 never felt so good.

Below you’ll find a list of all the goals, dreams and life experiences I would love to fulfill before I leave this earth.

1. Travel to Paris, Dubai and Africa 2. Meet LL Cool J and Denzel Washington 3. Experience a celebrity spa resort in Arizona 4. Ski at Lake Tahoe 5. Retire by age of 60 6. Learn how to speak Spanish fluently 7. Participate in a triathlon 8. Go scuba diving 9. Hike a trail in the mountains 10. Ride a camel 11. Go zip lining 12. Learn to play chess 13. Connect with a classmate 14. Pursue marketing business 15. Publish a book 16. Fly in a hot air balloon 17. Learn to swing dance 18. Take a cruise to Alaska 19. Take a vacation to Turks and Caicos 20. Get a tattoo 21. Visit Niagara Falls 22. Attend Broadway play in New York City 23. Attend professional basketball game 24. Plant a vegetable garden 25. Keynote speaker at AKA Leadership Breakfast

26. Host a glam party for my friends 27. Host a dinner party for my family 28. Get a complete makeover 29. Organize my clothes closet 30. Become a wine connoisseur 31. Stay at the Waldorf Hotel in New York 32. Get accreditation in public relations 33. Learn to play the piano 34. Win the Florida Lottery 35. Take a self-defense class 36. Take a road trip to Key West 37. Vacation in Jamaica 38. Live in Canada for six months 39. Act in a film or movie 40. Featured in a media interview with Oprah Winfrey 41. Learn to sew a quilt 42. Build a new home 43. Learn graphic design 44. Donate to a scholarship endowment 45. Take an ancestry DNA test 46. Volunteer at a nursing home 47. Eat vegetarian food for 30 days 48. Perform a kind deed to five strangers 49. Become debt free 50. Walk the red carpet at Grammy Awards

Crystal L. Pruitt March 27