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“The Crystal Story: From Buck Hills Ski Club to Crystal Today and in the Future.”
Presented by: Chris MacInnes and Shaun Johnson
July 9, 2026, 7 pm
Mills Community House & ZOOM
Zoom Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87602634122
Have you ever wondered how Crystal Mountain got started? For a few years, local families made their own tracks in the nearby fields and woods before mastering the rope tow and slopes at Creech’s Hill, where a tight-knit community of skiing families regularly gathered. These were the families who founded the Buck Hills Ski Club and, as volunteers, built Buck Hills Ski Area into a winter playground for the community. While much has changed since 1956, when Buck Hills opened, the sense of community and the joy of sliding on snow with friends and family remain as strong as ever.
Join the Benzie Area Historical Society on Thursday, July 9, 2026, at 7 pm at the Mills Community House for their Benzonia Academy Lecture Series as Chris MacInnes, one of the owners of Crystal Mountain, and Shaun Johnson not only share the history of Crystal Mountain, but they will also share what the future holds for THE year-round destination. If you have any clothing or memorabilia from Crystal Mountain, wear and/or bring it with you to help reminisce!
Presenters: Chris MacInnes & Shaun Johnson
Chris MacInnes:
Chris’s love affair with winter and sliding on snow began at age four on Christmas morning at her Kraker grandparents’ home. That was the year she and her brother George discovered skis and poles under the tree. They wasted no time heading outdoors to begin sliding on snow with what they both agreed were the best presents ever.
Chris pursued her passion for skiing at St. Lawrence University, where she competed on the ski team. After graduating, she launched a career in the ski industry, joining Yamaha International’s Sporting Goods Division. She sold skis throughout the Midwest and later across the East Coast, deepening her connection to the sport from both a business and a lifestyle perspective.
In 1980, Chris met her future husband, Jim MacInnes, on a ski trip in Utah. Five years later, they made a life-changing decision to leave Southern California and join Crystal Mountain, which was now wholly owned by Chris’s parents, George and Althea Petritz.
Since then, Jim and Chris have been privileged to lead the team that operates and develops Crystal Mountain, shaping it into a welcoming destination for visitors and locals in every season, and a place many now call home.
Shaun Johnson:
Shaun Johnson has lived in Benzie County since 1957, growing up in the “Carrier House,” the oldest house in Benzonia, which his family still owns. His father, Ed Johnson, was a High School teacher at Benzie Central for 25 years, and my mother was the nursery school teacher and librarian in Benzonia.
He taught at Benzie Central High School for 20 years and was the ski coach for the Benzie Central ski team. I have worked and played at Crystal Mountain since the early ‘70s, and that is where you will find me on many winter days. During the summer, I volunteer as a docent at the Benzie Historical Museum, where you will often find me telling stories about Benzie County.