Guest Post: Ashtin's Person of Influence

Jerry Claussen

My Uncle Jerry is the person I want to emulate. He was a Seargent first-class in the U.S. Army. He lives in Palmer, Alaska. He has taught me a lot of things that I would not normally have learned on my own, like how to make a water filter out of rocks and a water bottle. He has also taken me to do things I wouldn’t have normally done, like hiking or fishing.

Jerry is a larger-than-life person both physically and mentally. He is 6 foot 5 inches tall and used to be 260 lbs of pure muscle. He is now smaller because he is training for a  marathon to support his Army buddies. He has long brown hair and brown eyes, just like his brother. Jerry reminds me of the Punisher because of his strength and hard-working demeanor.

Jerry is strong-willed and fun. He likes climbing mountains, riding bikes, and hiking with his wife and children. He is very adventurous and never stops exploring. Jerry’s determination is very admirable. Jerry’s friend was on an ice fishing trip, and while he was on his way to the lake he fished at, it started snowing really hard, to the point that it became a complete whiteout. He got stranded in the middle of the lake with Jerry being a few miles behind. When Jerry got within about a mile of the lake the blizzard hit him too. Jerry realized that since there was a blizzard with no visibility, his friend would have to stay where he was until help could arrive, so Jerry, being the stubborn man he is, started his Jeep back up and charged straight into the blizzard to try to find his friend. Because of the fact that they were in Alaska, they both had food, water, and extra layers in their Jeeps, so Jerry’s friend was able to survive long enough to be rescued two days later and returned to his wife who was worried sick. 

 When I was about twelve-years-old my family went camping a lot and he liked to come with us. He would take me and my cousin on hikes through the hills, forests, and mountains, and he would show us the wildlife around the camp. We used to find deer laying in the grass, owls and sparrows in the trees, and sparkling rainbow-trout in the rivers. He used to take us on off-road trails and through the tall grasses of the hills. I used to be reluctant to follow him on the trails, but every time I felt scared of doing something he would say, “You’ll never know if you like something if you don’t try.”

Jerry has taught me to be more adventurous and to have fun no matter where I am. He has also taught me to never give up and to always be determined to reach my goals. I am reminded of him every time I see an off-road trail. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without his guidance.