Jon

Name

Jon V.

Pronouns

He/Him

Age

32

Occupation

Social Studies Teacher

What are your hobbies?

On my personal time I enjoy going for rides, whether that be in my car or on my motorcycle. There is something about open roads that are therapeutic. As a history buff I also love to do research and have enriched conversations on topics of interest. Listening to some good music and having some whiskey is also a great way to spend a day when I can.

What are three words to describe you?

Perseverance, Loyal, Intelligent

What is your pet peeve?

Quitters! I am ready to leave a spleen on the field.

Which Survivor player (or Surviving Bloomington player) are you the most like?

This is a great question! I believe I am this weird mixture of a few Survivor players. I am as loyal as Woo Hwang, competition beast like Tasha Fox, I would like to believe at times I am as chaotic as Kass, genuine as Jeremy Collins (29,31) and I am as strategic as Jesse (43).

Why do you think you will be the Sole Survivor?

I will undoubtedly be the Sole Survivor because quite frankly I am the definition of Perseverance. I went from being a high school drop out at 16 years old to being a 32 year old with three college degrees and a homeowner. I remember the pain of living check to check, being paid minimum wage and in result having to burn bridges with utility companies. I battled to stay steadily employed but my personal woe translated to my issues with authority figures. I would change jobs like they were a pair of underwear. I remember joining a 1% motorcycle club and only being passionate about riding my Harley and partying. The embarrassment of borrowing money and being arrested made me think I would only amount to being another statistic. In 2016, ten years after calling it quits in high school I decided to enroll in college on a dare. I was 26, at the time and I had no idea how to utilize Microsoft Office, properly plug in citations or how to do basic Algebra. Nevertheless, that inner competitor and resilience in me; that I should have always known I had activated its Survivor mode. MY fierceness and intensity to dominate education and employment like I did on the basketball court began to translate in the betterment of my life. Within a 5 year span, I earned my Associates, Bachelors and Masters with the latter two coming with Latin Honors. I have been in the room with scholars and convicts and living what is essentially two lives has shaped my comfortability in any and all settings. In my personal life story I am the Sole Survivor and I am just waiting to be crowned the Sole Survivor of Surviving Bloomington.