BLOG: Meeting an everyday hero
Written by Cadet Ramon Cebrian, a Salvation Army officer-in-training assigned to the Brooklyn Park Salvation Army during the 2019 Christmas season
My wife and I carried out our 2019 Christmas Assignment at the Noble Worship and Service Center in Brooklyn Park, Minn., where we were blessed to serve alongside Auxiliary Captains Josh and Jen Polanco. It was at Noble that we met an everyday hero and fellow soldier named Theatry “TJ” Jones (pictured right).
TJ has been a faithful volunteer at Noble for more than 13 years. During this Christmas season alone, he gave more than 240 hours of his time as a volunteer route driver.
You may ask, what makes TJ a hero in our eyes? He has been serving consistently for many years – even through times of great personal struggle. Let me tell you some of his story.
TJ first arrived at The Salvation Army in June of 2006, after purchasing a home nearby. He remembers driving by and seeing a sign promoting church services. He decided to attend one Sunday. Before he knew it, he began volunteering. “From day one, they put me to work!” TJ said.
Over the years, TJ has served in many different capacities, from being a custodian, to cooking, to collecting food donations, and serving as a volunteer driver for children's programs and Christmas kettles.
Tragedy struck TJ on Dec 20, 2017. While he was out driving for kettles, he felt pain in his chest. He stopped by a nearby clinic to get it checked out. A hospital scan and biopsy soon confirmed that TJ had a 6 cm cancerous mass in his lung. In spite of the diagnosis, TJ finished off the kettle season and continued to serve even through his radiation and chemo treatments.
Eight months later, there was hope: TJ’s doctor informed him that his tumor had shrunk from 6 cm to 4 cm.
His battle with cancer finally came to an end during the 2019 kettle season. After feeling a familiar pain in his chest, TJ went back to the doctor to get it checked out, fearing the cancer had returned. Then, on Dec. 23, 2019, TJ received the best Christmas gift anyone could receive: The doctor said the pain TJ was feeling was not from the cancer, and that he was officially cancer-free. Everyone who knows TJ was ecstatic.
Captains Polanco once asked TJ how he was able to continue volunteering knowing he was in pain and fearing the cancer was spreading. He replied: “There is no sense for me to stay home and be worried about it. I am going to keep doing God’s work.”
A hero is a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. In TJ’s life we found someone who has consistently embodied these characteristics. We thank God for giving us the opportunity to meet this everyday hero who is very much unknown to the world but beloved by many here at the Brooklyn Park Salvation Army.
I leave you with TJ's favorite Bible promise, found in Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
The Salvation Army Northern Division pledges to do the most good with your gifts of time and money, with 81 cents of every dollar going directly to services. Join us by volunteering or making a donation to support your local community.