Joshua Jerome
Christus Rex Lutheran Campus Center, Grand Forks, N.D. Custodian at Grand Forks Air Force Base
Special Olympics National and World Games competitions:
2015 World Games in Los Angeles: 4x400 relay, 5,000-meter run, 10,000- meter run. Gold medalist in 4x400 relay.
2014 USA National Games in New Jersey: Unified soccer, bronze medalist.
2010 USA National Games in Omaha, Neb.: Unified soccer, bronze medalist.
2009 World Games in Idaho: Alpine skiing, gold medalist.
My first experience with church was in 2005. I felt very accepted at Christus Rex and everyone was very nice to me.
To me, church is a place where you get accepted for who you are. You meet friends, you sing and pray.
I believe God is important. I believe you can do anything you work toward.
My favorite part of competing in the 2015 Special Olympics World Games was meeting people from all over the world. A lot of my friends and I still talk on the phone or FaceTime with each other. And, of course, one of my favorite parts was winning the gold medal and breaking the Special Olympics world record.
I pray most days. I pray with family. I pray for my mom who passed away in 1997. I also pray for my best friend who passed away last year.
I share my faith by being a good brother and doing my part in the family. I also like to help out at the church a lot. I live how God wants me to and I always try to do the right things.
To keep calm and focused before competing, I dedicate winning the race to my mom and my best friend. I tell myself to do my best and I get focused in my head.
If I could change anything, nobody would call people retards. I really don’t like to be called a retard; that is very mean.
Most people think people with disabilities can’t do things, but I am pretty good at a lot of things.
People are surprised that I run marathons and can place in the top 10. People are also surprised I have worked at my job for 10 years.
My advice to other athletes is to practice hard and never give up.
I’m a Lutheran because I feel like I fit in at my church and everyone understands me. I don’t feel different. It’s a community of friendships, God’s word and singing. It’s a place that makes me happy to go to and I think that is what being Lutheran is about.
Sentence prompts are provided to each person featured. If you’d like to nominate someone for “I’m a Lutheran,” email megan.
brandsrud@elca.org.
12 AUGUST 2016
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