Cherish Lombard is a busy lady. It’s in her DNA. In addition to anchoring the 4 p.m., 6:30 p.m., and 9 p.m. newscasts on WRKG-TV, she is the mother of two young children, balancing home and work life like a champ!
When we visited, I was fascinated to learn her path to becoming a media personality.
The long and short of it is she seized an opportunity when it presented itself and never looked back. She believes persistence pays off. Multitasking is one of her strong suits; she’s been doing it for as long as she can remember.
Taking a chance audition
Born in Mobile, Cherish graduated from Murphy High School, where she was a cheerleader her freshman through senior years and learned to balance her time between cheering and academics.
Her grandmother graduated from Murphy, so going to school there was a big deal for her.
Instead of taking the summer off after graduation, Cherish got a part-time job at a law firm and immediately enrolled at the University of South Alabama.
Her father also went to the USA College of Medicine but passed away just weeks before her 7th birthday. She was on a path to follow in her father’s footsteps when that plan unexpectedly changed.
She vividly remembers sitting at a red light listening to her favorite radio station, 97.5 WABB, when she heard the DJs asking listeners to audition for a commercial. She says auditioning was completely out of her comfort zone, but a little voice told her to give it a try.
“Everyone loved WABB at that time; it was the station we all grew up with,” Lombard said. “I called and said I was interested in auditioning, and they invited me to the station. I showed up, shaking like a leaf. After I overcame my nervousness, I went on air and was chosen for the commercial.
“As I was leaving, one of the DJs ran out to my car in the rain and asked if I would like to work at WABB.”
At the time, she was 18 years old, already juggling school and her part-time job at a law firm, but the idea of working in radio piqued her interest.
The job was “Radio Listening Research.” Little did she know that was the code for “telemarketer;” she would have to call families during their dinner and bedtime, asking them what radio station they listened to.
“It was rough,” she laughed. “People were not nice! I got called every name in the book. But my mother encouraged me to stick with it, saying, ‘You never know where this might lead.’
After a short time, Cherish approached the program director at WABB , letting him know she was interested in being on air.
“He told me to put together some demos, and see where it goes,” Lombard said.
She did, and for weeks, when he got to work every morning, there was an aircheck tape on his desk. Eventually, he offered her a weekend morning position running the “Rick Dees Weekly Top 40” countdown, giving live weather reports during commercial breaks.
Lombard continued making tapes and was promoted to a full, live shift on the air from midnight to 6 a.m.
When she found out the weekday morning show needed a traffic reporter, she made more aircheck tapes until she landed that job.
Working in radio and TV
A news director at a local television station heard her traffic reports and asked if she would give the traffic reports for his station.
She said she would — if he would agree to let her intern at the TV station. With WABB’s approval, she started giving traffic updates on both the radio and television while working her part-time job and going to school at South.
As a television intern, the news director put one of her stories on air. Since she wasn’t an employee, the segment was met with some resistance.
Soon, a new manager was hired at WABB, and he decided to promote Cherish to a bigger role on the morning show, renaming it “Matt, Jay, and Cherish.”
She became the first female voice on the morning drive show since the FM station hit the airwaves in 1973. This was also met with resistance since that show had always been male-dominated.
Through it all, Cherish persisted.
Reporting the news — and moving to Nashville
She came to a crossroads. Knowing that pursuing a medical degree would become more time-consuming, she began to weigh the pros and cons of her career choices — and she enjoyed working in media.
She took her concerns to her guidance counselor at South Alabama, who asked about her other passions.
“Children!” she said.
Cherish’s mother was an elementary school teacher for 37 years, so she decided to change majors, this time following in her mother’s footsteps.
After earning her college degree in 2004 and spending years working as a co-host on the WABB morning show, a general assignment news reporter position presented itself, and Cherish applied. She was hired as a multimedia journalist, or “MMJ.”
This position requires a news reporter to come up with a story idea every day, set up interviews, take a camera out and shoot the interviews, shoot a cover video, and then write the story before tracking it and putting it all together, crafting it into what viewers see on the news.
When the station added a morning lifestyle show, she auditioned and got the anchor position. Then, in 2014, Cherish got a call from WKRN News 2 in Nashville and was hired as an anchor.
Amid all that, Cherish met Glenn, who you may know as “ Q-Tip ” on the radio, who’s now her husband. Their first child was born in Nashville.
“Nashville was different, fun, and I really enjoyed it. But after our first child was born in 2018, my mother traveled to Nashville every week to be with him,” Lombard said. “She would leave Mobile on Sunday night and return Friday afternoon. This went on for months, and we decided we needed to be closer to family.”
Working at WKRG-TV
At the end of 2018, there was an opening at WKRG for a 4 p.m. newscast in the planning stages.
“I went home to Mobile and had a nice meeting with Jesse Grear (WKRG Vice President/General Manager),” Lombard said. “I got an offer, and my husband and I packed up our life in Nashville and moved. I’ve been fortunate to pave the way several times throughout my career, being the first anchor of ‘The 4 on 5,’ the first co-anchor on WKRN’s 4 p.m. newscast in Nashville, the first co-host of a lifestyle show in Mobile, and the first woman on the WABB morning show.”
During her career, Cherish has covered many big stories, including President Donald Trump’s visit to Nashville in 2015, Nashville’s biggest snowfall in 13 years in 2016, The U.S. Navy Blue Angels jet crash in Smyrna, and the mass shooting at a Tennessee Waffle House.
She’s also had the opportunity to fly with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds , interview some of the biggest country music artists at the CMA Awards , and be part of live team coverage ahead of the Predators playing in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Cherish Lombard, taking flight with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds Cherish Lombard, pictured with country music superstars Faith Hill and Tim McGraw
‘You have to have a connection’
Today, Cherish is the solo weekday anchor for WKRG News 5’s 4 p.m. newscast and co-anchors WKR G News 5 at 6:30 and 9 p.m.
She tells me a lot of work goes into preparing for each newscast, and recognizes that this is the ideal job for her because she loves telling stories and connecting with people.
“You have to have a connection and be active on social media,” she said.
Animals are her passion outside of her family and job. She’s an animal advocate who has volunteered in animal rescue, even going to Waveland, Mississippi, after Hurricane Katrina to rescue dogs left behind.
“Three dogs and two kids make for endless entertainment!” she said.
Caring for animals plays a big role in Cherish Lombard’s life.
Living on the Gulf Coast
In her spare time, Lombard says, “We chase kids and dogs around. Lots of kids’ stuff, dance lessons, swimming, gymnastics.”
When they get the chance, they love to attend concerts, particularly country music shows.
When they moved back from Nashville, they rented a pink house on the bluff in Fairhope overlooking Mobile Bay.
“It was during Covid, and we were so lucky to have this incredible place to live,” Lombard said. “I love being back on the Gulf Coast, and we’re enjoying everything it has to offer. Life is a blessing.”
Thank you, Cherish. You bring great energy and a can-do attitude that we can all learn from.
We wish you continued success in all you do!
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