Hamilton radio personality, mental health advocate retiring at year’s end
Published September 9, 2021 at 5:45 pm
Ted Michaels, a familiar voice to generations of Hamiltonians and a voice for mental health awareness, will be signing off at the end of the year.
The longtime news anchor at AM900 CHML in Hamilton announced this week through his social media channels that he is retiring from full-time radio work. Michaels final day on the news-talk station will be on Dec. 15. Michaels has been a broadcaster since 1975 and has anchored newscasts on AM900 since 2004.
As my impending #retirement from full-time work looms, I've heard from some people who wants me to share some of the stories from my career…. how it started, good times, bad times etc. So… standby… missive number one is coming up.#Tedremembers
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— Ted Michaels (@MrTedMichaels) September 8, 2021
In addition to keeping Hamilton radio listeners up to speed on current events, Michaels’ lasting legacy might well be the Wellness Wednesday series that he founded at CMHL. The series started out in October 2014, in conjunction with national mental health, and grew into a long-term, year-round series where Michaels dialogued with health professionals and people who have struggled with mood disorders such as anxiety and depression.
A commonly quoted figure is that 1 in 5 Canadians will endure mental health issues at some point in their lives. Michaels has said he believes the figure is more like 1 in 3, or 1 in 2.
“These are topics that may make people uncomfortable, but you have to talk about them,” Michaels said in 2015.
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“There is always hope out there,” he added.
The Wellness Wednesdays show (later renamed Health and Wellness) that Michaels created has won a string of awards for its advocacy. The series won a National Champions of Mental Health Award in 2015, along with a media awards from the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention and the Canadian Mental Health Association — Ontario.
An avid runner, Michaels has also been a booster and promoter of the annual Around The Bay road race, which traditionally takes place in Hamilton in late March. He has also lent his time to Ronald McDonald House, the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, and his alma mater, Mohawk College.
Michaels also called play-by-play McMaster Marauders football on CHML for several seasons in the late aughts and early 2010s. In 2011, after McMaster won the Vanier Cup national championship for the first time in school history, Michaels introduced head coach Stefan Ptaszek and several players at Hamilton City Hall when they were recognized at a council meeting.
While Michaels is retiring from full-time radio work, he indicated that he plans to be active in community and charity work.
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