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A Journey Worth Every Step
When Tim Jones was recruited from Grandview, Missouri, to play for William Jewell’s football team, he knew that college was going to be a change. It’s safe to say that he never could have imagined how much his journey would change him.
“My journey started out rough,” Tim admits.
Tim enrolled in college with a desire to help others. But his plans to study biochemistry and pursue a career in medicine were derailed by the academic and social challenges many students face when they enter a rigorous college program.
“I was intimidated. I was in one class with nine valedictorians. I thought, maybe this is not the right school for me,” he said.
In fact, Jewell was so demanding that Tim left after his first year, transferring to a local community college.
But Tim missed Jewell’s sense of community and the friends he had made. He resolved to improve his grades so he could return.
“I wasn’t going to give up just because that first year was tough,” Tim said. “When you face adversity, it’s all about how you respond.”
Tim decided that nothing was going to stop him, and after one year, he returned to Jewell with the help of Linda Chappell, Head Coach of the Spirit Team.
Tim used many words to describe Chappell: teacher, coach, adviser, second mother. “She took me under her wing,” he said. “She really brought the best out of me.”
Chappell believes “it was Tim’s dedication, tenacity, and personal vision that brought him back to Jewell to finish his education.” She cited the tremendous personal growth she has seen in Tim in just a few short years.
Throughout his college career, Tim has been an active member of the campus community: playing football, running track, singing in the choir. He even became a member of the team he least expected: the Spirit Team.
“I had the highest toss out of all the guys,” he said with a smile.
Along the way, Tim discovered the best way for him to help others. He changed his major to physical education with an emphasis in recreation and sports management.
Tim plans to make a difference as the director of a community or fitness center. For him, physical education and recreation is another way of teaching. “I like to help people improve their lives – physically, mentally, spiritually,” he said.
Tim has already amassed an impressive resume by working and interning for the YMCA, Grandview Community Center, and Anytime Fitness. His work has included running a children’s day camp and conducting a study of fitness for adults.
Tim now sees the challenging academic environment as a positive. He said it taught him to be responsible and accountable. “Freshman year, I didn’t even go to class. Now, I enjoy going,” he said. Tim is currently researching graduate programs and planning for future career opportunities.
At the start of Tim’s journey – before he left Jewell and came back again – he helped to organize a campus Black History program where he performed “A Change Gonna Come” by his favorite artist, Sam Cooke.
The lyrics of this song, a tribute to the triumph of hope over adversity, read like an anthem for Tim’s personal journey – and a reminder of what is possible with the support of a strong community:
“Oh there been times that I thought I couldn’t last for long,
But now I think I’m able to carry on,
It’s been a long, a long time coming,
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will.”
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