November 19, 2025 • 7 mins
Chris Palusky, CEO of Mel Trotter Ministries joins us to discuss the miracles seen through Mel Trotter Ministries.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Man, this is our twenty second annual. What were you
all doing twenty two years ago? I was thinking I
was part of the iHeart staff here but at a
different radio station, so I knew it was going on,
and I can't I have a hard time doing the
math about when I started the team here. But I've
been a blessed to be a part of an awful
(00:21):
lot of these Turkey drops and every year. Like Brett
said earlier, it's just our favorite broadcast because it does
such an amazing thing to make a difference. But it's
cool just to be a tiny little part of this thing,
to watch what people can do when we all work together,
and we're not seeing a lot of headlines of that
these days, and it's kind of fun to be a
(00:43):
part of a good news story. How's that? To that end,
let's check back in with our friend Chris Puluski with
Mel Trotter Ministries. Chris is out at celebrations Centema North.
There is a webcam that if you go to our
Facebook page Facebook dot slash Wood Radio you can see, folks.
What do you see out your window right now? Chris?
Speaker 2 (01:06):
I'm actually out front and so I'm looking at a
line of cars that are just coming now and donating turkeys.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Ah, we love to see it, Chris, And we're inviting
anyone and everyone to drop off those frozen birds to
any one of our drop off locations. You can get
those at turkey drop dot org. But Chris, it feels
like this time of year, especially in West Michigan, people
want to help and sometimes lots of times they're not
really sure how to do that. Can you talk to
(01:35):
us about some other ways the community can get involved
with your overall mission?
Speaker 2 (01:40):
Absolutely, because you're right. I think people almost become paralyzed
because things like homelessness are hunger and they feel overwhelming.
But there are ways that people can help that are
very tangible, that are very It's easy, and I would say,
you know, as a Christian organization, we always ask people,
can you pray for us? Can you pray for our guests?
Can you pray for the work? So we ask for prayer,
(02:03):
We ask that people volunteer. I mean, we have so
many volunteer opportunities with ourselves and partner organizations like Degaze
or Family Promise. Come out and volunteer, donate. We need
donations to keep us going. And also today it's very tangible.
Please just donate a turkey so people can do something.
So I want to encourage folks that it's not something
(02:27):
that should be paralyzing, but it should be something like
a call for us to actually to do something.
Speaker 4 (02:32):
Chris, I want to ask you about our younger generation,
and they give us so much hope. You know, sometimes
we wisecrack about it. I'm raising my hand as I
say that on wood Radio with my kids. But I've
also seen and been blessed with where I've got an
opportunity to speak or be involved with churches and fellowship
with Christian athletes was something that was big to me
when I was growing up. There's youth groups out there.
(02:55):
I'm seeing things where teams at athletic events I'm covering
are praying together with each other out on the court.
Now than ever, how powerful that is. And so can
you speak to that a little bit if people want
to get involved, and maybe they are with a school
or with a youth group or a church. Because I'm
so amazed at kids that go on mission trips already
(03:17):
in high school.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
I would say, bring it on. We're ready for them.
We have some schools we work with and they volunteer
in our cafeteria and our shelter and our strip stores.
We have so many opportunities for people to be the
hands and see the christ schools, churches, just individuals. So
and it's encouraging with youth. We had a couple of
youth groups come through our cafeteria and we're serving our
(03:42):
guests lunch, and I think it was more impactful for
them than even for our guests. I guess we're very
grateful for that, but I think it just kind of
opens their eyes. And they're younger folks that maybe had
never done anything like that. So it's almost like doing
a mission trip in your own backyard.
Speaker 5 (03:58):
Looking to make an impact, you know. Just talking about
this time of the day and sometimes things tend to
slow up a little bit. But I actually think what
we're doing right now is we're gearing up for the
lunch rush. Because what you got is you got people
in the offices right now. You may be thinking about
how you could get together in the office as a team,
maybe even challenge another business absolutely, you know, like that
(04:21):
rival business you got across the street, challenge them to
see who can get the most turkeys together for such
a great cause right now, get it together and get
ready and go as a team together and maybe the
boss will let you have a you know, little time
off to go and do something good. Drop some turkeys
off today at lunch. What a great time.
Speaker 4 (04:40):
By the way, justin speaking my language, because the Green
and White fans are pretty fired up for that basketball
game last night.
Speaker 5 (04:46):
That's right.
Speaker 4 (04:46):
Last I checked the a mazing Blue fans play tonight.
Speaker 5 (04:49):
Are at.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
That's right, Chris. Before we take a break for Top
of the Hour news, I know you see a lot
of change. You get to see people I mentioned come
out that were a little different on their way in
in the last year that you've been a part of
Meltrodder Ministries. Is there a quick story of a person
that you've seen, Maybe a family that came into a
(05:17):
family promise that or maybe it was a family that
was diverted from homelessness, which is something that is just
you can't believe it actually happens, but it actually happens.
Give us a little send.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
There's so many stories. The first one I can think
of as a single gentleman and he was not in
this shelter, but he was living on the streets. He
didn't want to come into the shelter. He had addiction
issues and mental health issues, and he's lived the winter
in a planter. Like in the planter, I would see
(05:52):
him every single day. I'd visit with him every day,
make sure that he had food, and there were times
where I didn't know if he was alive. I would
actually pull and say are you okay? And he was
usually poke his head out and say can you give
me amocha? And I go get him amocha. Well, as
of last month, he's in recovery. He is living in
(06:15):
an apartment on his own. He's able to pay his bills,
he's functioning. He's not going to live in the planet.
He lost both of his toes last winter, his big
toast to frostbite, so I mean it was brutal. But
now he's on this road where I thought I didn't
have much hope to him, you know, and I just
would pray with him and talk with him, and you
(06:35):
know what, he's on his own. He's doing well, and
he I think he heard the story from Shelley from
another individual. He stopped by the shelter and I was like,
what are you doing here? He said, I wanted to
show you my keys, so he showed me his keys
to his apartment with just so much pride.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
Miracles, man, it's just playing miracles. And you get to
walk alongside our friends at mel Trotter and help the
family eat next next week for Thanksgiving that wouldn't have
a chance to do. So we'll catch back up with
you next hour. Chris Poluski is the CEO of Meltrodder Ministries.
Thank you, thank you, thank
Man, this is our twenty second annual. What were you
all doing twenty two years ago? I was thinking I
was part of the iHeart staff here but at a
different radio station, so I knew it was going on,
and I can't I have a hard time doing the
math about when I started the team here. But I've
been a blessed to be a part of an awful
(00:21):
lot of these Turkey drops and every year. Like Brett
said earlier, it's just our favorite broadcast because it does
such an amazing thing to make a difference. But it's
cool just to be a tiny little part of this thing,
to watch what people can do when we all work together,
and we're not seeing a lot of headlines of that
these days, and it's kind of fun to be a
(00:43):
part of a good news story. How's that? To that end,
let's check back in with our friend Chris Puluski with
Mel Trotter Ministries. Chris is out at celebrations Centema North.
There is a webcam that if you go to our
Facebook page Facebook dot slash Wood Radio you can see, folks.
What do you see out your window right now? Chris?
Speaker 2 (01:06):
I'm actually out front and so I'm looking at a
line of cars that are just coming now and donating turkeys.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Ah, we love to see it, Chris, And we're inviting
anyone and everyone to drop off those frozen birds to
any one of our drop off locations. You can get
those at turkey drop dot org. But Chris, it feels
like this time of year, especially in West Michigan, people
want to help and sometimes lots of times they're not
really sure how to do that. Can you talk to
(01:35):
us about some other ways the community can get involved
with your overall mission?
Speaker 2 (01:40):
Absolutely, because you're right. I think people almost become paralyzed
because things like homelessness are hunger and they feel overwhelming.
But there are ways that people can help that are
very tangible, that are very It's easy, and I would say,
you know, as a Christian organization, we always ask people,
can you pray for us? Can you pray for our guests?
Can you pray for the work? So we ask for prayer,
(02:03):
We ask that people volunteer. I mean, we have so
many volunteer opportunities with ourselves and partner organizations like Degaze
or Family Promise. Come out and volunteer, donate. We need
donations to keep us going. And also today it's very tangible.
Please just donate a turkey so people can do something.
So I want to encourage folks that it's not something
(02:27):
that should be paralyzing, but it should be something like
a call for us to actually to do something.
Speaker 4 (02:32):
Chris, I want to ask you about our younger generation,
and they give us so much hope. You know, sometimes
we wisecrack about it. I'm raising my hand as I
say that on wood Radio with my kids. But I've
also seen and been blessed with where I've got an
opportunity to speak or be involved with churches and fellowship
with Christian athletes was something that was big to me
when I was growing up. There's youth groups out there.
(02:55):
I'm seeing things where teams at athletic events I'm covering
are praying together with each other out on the court.
Now than ever, how powerful that is. And so can
you speak to that a little bit if people want
to get involved, and maybe they are with a school
or with a youth group or a church. Because I'm
so amazed at kids that go on mission trips already
(03:17):
in high school.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
I would say, bring it on. We're ready for them.
We have some schools we work with and they volunteer
in our cafeteria and our shelter and our strip stores.
We have so many opportunities for people to be the
hands and see the christ schools, churches, just individuals. So
and it's encouraging with youth. We had a couple of
youth groups come through our cafeteria and we're serving our
(03:42):
guests lunch, and I think it was more impactful for
them than even for our guests. I guess we're very
grateful for that, but I think it just kind of
opens their eyes. And they're younger folks that maybe had
never done anything like that. So it's almost like doing
a mission trip in your own backyard.
Speaker 5 (03:58):
Looking to make an impact, you know. Just talking about
this time of the day and sometimes things tend to
slow up a little bit. But I actually think what
we're doing right now is we're gearing up for the
lunch rush. Because what you got is you got people
in the offices right now. You may be thinking about
how you could get together in the office as a team,
maybe even challenge another business absolutely, you know, like that
(04:21):
rival business you got across the street, challenge them to
see who can get the most turkeys together for such
a great cause right now, get it together and get
ready and go as a team together and maybe the
boss will let you have a you know, little time
off to go and do something good. Drop some turkeys
off today at lunch. What a great time.
Speaker 4 (04:40):
By the way, justin speaking my language, because the Green
and White fans are pretty fired up for that basketball
game last night.
Speaker 5 (04:46):
That's right.
Speaker 4 (04:46):
Last I checked the a mazing Blue fans play tonight.
Speaker 5 (04:49):
Are at.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
That's right, Chris. Before we take a break for Top
of the Hour news, I know you see a lot
of change. You get to see people I mentioned come
out that were a little different on their way in
in the last year that you've been a part of
Meltrodder Ministries. Is there a quick story of a person
that you've seen, Maybe a family that came into a
(05:17):
family promise that or maybe it was a family that
was diverted from homelessness, which is something that is just
you can't believe it actually happens, but it actually happens.
Give us a little send.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
There's so many stories. The first one I can think
of as a single gentleman and he was not in
this shelter, but he was living on the streets. He
didn't want to come into the shelter. He had addiction
issues and mental health issues, and he's lived the winter
in a planter. Like in the planter, I would see
(05:52):
him every single day. I'd visit with him every day,
make sure that he had food, and there were times
where I didn't know if he was alive. I would
actually pull and say are you okay? And he was
usually poke his head out and say can you give
me amocha? And I go get him amocha. Well, as
of last month, he's in recovery. He is living in
(06:15):
an apartment on his own. He's able to pay his bills,
he's functioning. He's not going to live in the planet.
He lost both of his toes last winter, his big
toast to frostbite, so I mean it was brutal. But
now he's on this road where I thought I didn't
have much hope to him, you know, and I just
would pray with him and talk with him, and you
(06:35):
know what, he's on his own. He's doing well, and
he I think he heard the story from Shelley from
another individual. He stopped by the shelter and I was like,
what are you doing here? He said, I wanted to
show you my keys, so he showed me his keys
to his apartment with just so much pride.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
Miracles, man, it's just playing miracles. And you get to
walk alongside our friends at mel Trotter and help the
family eat next next week for Thanksgiving that wouldn't have
a chance to do. So we'll catch back up with
you next hour. Chris Poluski is the CEO of Meltrodder Ministries.
Thank you, thank you, thank
Popular Podcasts
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.