10 Most-Beautiful Finalist: Krystal Russell

Age: 30

Occupation: Senior accountant at Whitlock, Selim & Keehn

Background: Krystal is from Mt. Vernon and has been in 417-land for 26 years. She lives in Springfield with her husband, Matthew, and their labs, Charlie and Lilly.

Tell us why you love 417-land.

Simply put, I love 417-land because it is home. 417-land is a great place to have it all. 417-land is the place to raise a family, be involved in your community, pursue a career, own a small business, enjoy great friends and neighbors and have a variety of entertainment.

Tell us about your community involvement and volunteering. (Please tell us what organizations you’re involved in, what you do to participate and how long you’ve been doing it.)

Junior League of Springfield: I have actively participated in several committees, including Celebrate the Season, Arrangements and Pitter Pat Public Relations. I have also volunteered for Isabel’s House and the Plaid Door through my involvement with the League. I joined JLS in July of 2006.

Junior Achievement–Ozarks Region: Board Member since 2007. I am the treasurer, and I serve on the steering committee. I am currently helping to improve the organizational structure of JA-Ozarks, so our organization can grow to help reach even more students.

Scleroderma Foundation: The last three years, I have raised money for the foundation and volunteered my time for fundraising events.

Special Olympics: I am currently working on a committee with my co-workers to raise money for the Special Olympics. We are creating ways to earn donations from our employees, so that we can support the Special Olympics. We will also participate during the events.

Miscellaneous: I am involved in the community in various other ways. For example, I judge business contests for high school students, I participate in the American Cancer Society walks, I attend various Chamber of Commerce activities, and I attend several non-profit fundraiser events throughout the year, such as Habitat for Humanity, March of Dimes, The Victim Center, Developmental Center of the Ozarks, The Kitchen, Breast Cancer Foundation of the Ozarks and more.

What makes your community involvement worthwhile?

There are various reasons why I am involved in the community. Generally I believe giving is part of who I am. I get the most satisfaction in my day when I am able to help someone. I also believe it every citizen’s duty to what they can for their community to make it a better place.

I am a member of the Junior League of Springfield because it is a wonderful organization that gets things done. Over the years, JLS has completed various ambitious projects, all made successful by hardworking women. I am proud to be a part of an organization that believes in working as a team and that no task is too small.

I joined Junior Achievement–Ozarks Region Board of Directors to help children learn more about the free enterprise system from professionals. I had several wonderful role models growing up who helped me to be successful, and I wanted to be that role model for even one person. I joined also because I missed being around teenagers. My husband and I owned a video store and tanning salon for 10 years, and we had several teenage employees that I enjoyed mentoring. Junior Achievement is a way to fuel our youth’s minds and teach them about the business environment from the professionals who work in that environment.

Scleroderma Foundation: One of my best friends has scleroderma. She has a disease for which there is no cure. Everyday, she lives her life to its fullest. She is the happiest, most thoughtful person I know. She has started scleroderma support groups in each city she had lived in, and she organizes events to raise a lot of money for the organization. Last year, she won an award for her volunteer efforts. I enjoy helping to raise money for the Scleroderma Foundation and volunteering my time for the events my friend organizes. I wish in my life I could give and enjoy it half as much as she does.

Special Olympics: Several of my co-workers and I are personally connected to the Special Olympics. We chose to get our resources together and make a Whitlock, Selim and Keehn team together to help support the Special Olympics. My sister is mentally handicapped, and I know the joy in her face when she participates in wonderful activities such as the Special Olympics.

Hobbies (Go ahead; list them all! And tell us why you love them.)

I enjoy spending time with my girls: my lab dogs.

I enjoy biking with my mom because it is a great way for us to spend time together.

I enjoy scuba diving. It is really peaceful, and you can see one of the most beautiful parts of the world.

I enjoy traveling because I really like to see the different parts of the world and see how other people live in their day-to-day lives.

I love to cook! And I collect recipes. I really like to collect recipes from my friends and family of items that are easy to make and have everyday ingredients.

I love to go to concerts! I will travel to see a good show. I especially love to see Kenny Chesney shows. I am a huge fan.

Are you involved in any professional organizations? (What are they, what’s your role, and how long have you been doing it?)

American Society of Certified Public Accountants, member, 1999 to present.

Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants, member, 1999 to present.

The Network, 2008 to present, member.

What’s something that might surprise us about you? (Or a story you love to tell.)

It was known at an early age that I was going to be an accountant, or something similar. When I was little, my parents would give my sister and I each $1 and we could buy whatever we wanted at the store. Most children would find a toy or candy that would suite them, but no not me. I would always buy office supplies. Ledger paper, receipt books, blank checks etc. I had made my own “money” out of construction paper and I used a bank box to practice counting it to anyone and everyone. I then give my “customers” recipes and would document my transactions in my ledger book. I enjoyed spending $1 on office supplies just as much as my sister enjoyed spending her $1 on candy!

Something that usually surprises people are that I have a law degree, but I choose to work in an accounting firm. In law school, I focused on business and tax classes, so I am able to give clients a more rounded approach to their accounting questions.