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LASTING INFLUENCE

When asked how long he’s been in the United States Coast Guard, FVL alum Jon Bartel (Class of ‘92) is quick with the response, “All me bloomin’ life, Sir!” This phrase, a reference to a passage (see blue box below) drilled into the minds of new cadets, simultaneously suggests that it takes a certain caliber of person to join the Coast Guard, and that service in this branch of the military sticks with you for life.

How long have you been in the US Coast Guard?

All my bloomin’ life, Sir! Me mother was a mermaid. Me father was King Neptune. I was born on the crest of a wave and rocked in the cradle of the deep. Seaweed and barnacles are me clothes, every tooth in me head is a marlinspike, the hair on me head is hemp, every bone in me body’s a spar, and when I spits, I spits tar. I’se hard, I is, I am, I are.

Jon Bartel smiling and sitting on the ground in front of a Coast Guard helicopter

Despite his response, Commander Bartel, who actually celebrated his 26th anniversary in the Coast Guard last June, came to the Guard in an indirect way. After graduating from FVL, he enrolled at Martin Luther College and earned a bachelors in education. Deciding not to become a teacher, he followed his heart (and his now wife) to Alaska. There, he took a job as an HVAC technician, and worked alongside the man who would first suggest that he become a “Coastie”.


Currently serving in North Carolina, CDR Bartel, has been stationed all over the country throughout his career, mostly along the west coast. He’s served in Massachusetts, Alaska, Oregon, and California. Among the blessings he recounts of his time in California is the fact that his kids could attend a Lutheran school. “We certainly weren’t able to have that for the vast majority of my career,” he relates. “When I worked for the Customs and Border Protection, we actually moved up to Wildomar, so that our son could go to high school at CLHS (California Lutheran High School)."

Smiling Jon Bartel standing in front of a Coast Guard helicopter with cloudy skies above

CDR Bartel recalls his own time at FVL with fondness. The teachers, classes, and coaches provided caring instruction that has stayed with him throughout his life. “Band was awesome! Woodshop with Mr. Roekle is right up there. I played football for years, so there are definitely some good memories from Coach Strusz, and Mr. Benz always has a place in my heart.”


Recently, FVL popped back into CDR Bartel’s life in an interesting way. Among his duties in the Coast Guard is a mentorship program for new recruits. This past summer, Bartel traveled to Cape May, New Jersey, to meet his new mentoring recruit company, and was a little shocked to hear that one of the recruits was from Neenah, WI. “Neenah, Wisconsin!? Well, then one thing leads to another…we figure out we both went to Fox Valley.” The recruit, Zach Zimmer, is a 2023 graduate of FVL, and the two alum have been able to bond over a shared high school experience and a shared faith.

Jon Bartel's senior portrait
Zach Zimmer's senior portrait
View out a Coast Guard helicopter with Jon at the controls and a cruise ship in the background

For a career Coast Guardsman like Bartel, the words, “All me bloomin’ life,” may be true of military service; however, it’s remarkable how well they can also apply to his life as a product of the Lutheran education system. His faith, fed and nourished in the halls of FVL, has stayed with him throughout his adult life, and the impact that Lutheran schooling has had on him has guided him as a parent to seek the same for his own children. “You know…alumni get it. That’s why there are so many alumni kids there [at FVL],” claims Bartel, who urges parents to “realize that what you have is a huge blessing, to put your kid in Lutheran High School.”



— Matthew Foxen

FVL Communications Director

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