JC La Verde. Air Force Pararescueman. Firefighter Paramedic. All-American Triathlete. Coach. Chaplain.
The short version: an alligator, a hospital bed, part of a book written breathing through a trach, and a long climb back. The long version is the rest of this page.
The Alligator
On August 3rd, 2022, I was mid-stroke on an open-water swim when a 12.5-foot alligator took hold of me. Hillsborough County fire crews worked that call and transported me twice. A lot of people know that story. Fewer know what I'd been praying about right before it: that I wanted to understand what surrender actually looked like, willingly, instead of waiting to be broken into it.
Three months earlier, I swam 2.4 miles at the Ironman World Championship. The water was good, the weather was good, and the reason was okay. On August 3rd, the water was hot, the weather was terrible, I was rushed, and the reason was good. If you're going to suffer, you'd better do it for the deep things.
For a long time after, the story was something I told around fires. It wasn't the spine of anything yet. It was just the day I didn't die.
In Uniform
I was already in uniform long before the alligator: Air Force Pararescue, paramedic, firefighter.
Through The Trach
I wrote part of my first book sitting up in a hospital bed, breathing through a trach.
By the time the book was finished I had a different question than the one I started with. It wasn't "how do men get motivated?" It was: "why do motivated men so rarely follow through once the feeling fades?"
The Work
Defeat X is the company that came out of it. There are three ways in: custom work, priced after we talk; the 90-day program; and the spiritual work, which I never charge for.
I also work with agencies, companies and fire departments: one man at a time, small groups inside a shift, whole departments, and speaking.
Nurturing Resilience, my nonprofit for men and fathers, stays separate.
Faith is part of my life. I'll talk about it if you want to, and I won't if you don't. It's in the signature, not the sales pitch.
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Former USAF Pararescueman
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Firefighter paramedic
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Certified trauma coach and chaplain
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4x All-American triathlete
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Ironman World Championship Finisher, St. George, Utah (May 2022)
"After finishing his own effort, he stayed up through the night to support me until I finished around 4:00 a.m. He was there the whole time, encouraging me and making sure I got through it."
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The Embodiment Problem. A guide for those who never had a blueprint.
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