Top ‘Survivor’ instills selfless values at AIR FORCE ACADEMY
From afa.gazette.com and usafa.org
Ethan was one of the keynote speakers at the 12th Annual National Character and Leadership Symposium, a dynamic 3-day conference held on February 24-26, 2005. It was hosted by the Center for Character Development at the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) in Colorado. Approximately 125 visiting students from colleges and universities from across the nation joined about a thousand USAFA cadets in discussing critical moral, ethical, and leadership issues facing our world.
The Symposium emphasizes character and leadership from both a military and non-military perspective. The Core Value of “Excellence in All We Do” is the inspiration for this year’s theme, which is “Leading Positive Change… Raising the Standard of Excellence.”
This year’s list of distinguished speakers were Gen. Richard Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; H. Ross Perot, business executive; Tommy Lasorda, Los Angeles Dodgers senior vice president; Survivor: Africa winner Ethan Zohn; Fisher DeBerry, Falcon football head coach; Dr. Fred Malmstrom, visiting scholar for honor at the Academy; Michael Sand, former chief of the Colorado Springs Police Department’s tactical operations central division; several former olympians, business leaders, retired and active military officers, distinguished scholars, and members of the Air Force special operations community.
Top ‘Survivor’ instills selfless values at AFA (02/27/05)
Prize money used for HIV program
By DENNIS HUSPENI THE GAZETTE
Fans of the popular television reality show “Survivor” know it takes cunning to win the game, and most contestants use any means necessary.
They lie, cheat, steal and back-stab anyone who gets in their way.
But Ethan Zohn, who won “Survivor: Africa” in the show’s third season, used a different tack to win the $1 million prize.
He claims it was his solid moral character, personality and values that kept him on the island.
“No one had the h.eart to vote me off,” Zohn told more than 200 Air Force Academy cadets packed into a campus classroom Saturday. “I played Survivor the way I play life.”
Zohn’s speech - “Character: The Ultimate Survivor Tool” - was part of the 12th Annual National Character and Leadership Symposium, which ended Saturday after three days.
Although he was closer in age to the cadets than most of the symposium’s speakers and his television celebrity made him recognizable to “Survivor” fans, it was Zohn’s message that seemed to resonate.
The way Zohn saw it, he was selfless (”It’s not easy, but it’s always right” ); he was a teacher; he led by example; he was a valued member of the island community.
“I made myself crucial to everyone else’s survival,” Zohn said. “They depended on me and trusted me. I won in a way I can be proud of.”
But what seemed to impress students more than how he won the game is what Zohn did with his money and fame after the game ended.
Zohn formed the nonprofit charity “Grassroots Soccer.” The organization trains professional African soccer players about HIV/AIDS and safety measures. They, in turn, visit schools to educate children about how to prevent the deadly disease.
“There’s so many things you can do in a community to help,” Zohn said.
“You use what you’ve got. I chose to use my money, and celebrity, to help stop the spread of HIV.”
At one point, he showed video clips highlighting the AIDS epidemic in Africa. At another, he mixed in some humor.
Cadets said it was effective.
“He did get me to where I felt I wanted to help,” said Austin Ledingham, cadet 3rd class.
Other cadets, and students visiting from other universities, said it was refreshing to see a reality television show winner do something good with the winnings.
“I respect you so much, that was an awesome speech,” Melissa Thurner of the University of Wisconsin told Zohn afterward.
“It’s great what he did,” said Autumn Lorenz, an Air Force ROTC student from Charleston Southern University. “I hope he can influence more celebrities.”
“He put out some values that can help us as officers, and it came from a different perspective than the military.”
CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0110 or dhuspeni@gazette.com