From her time growing up on a farm outside Chester in south central Nebraska, Jody (Gunn) Vondra ‘97 recalls her humble rural roots throughout life’s joys and challenges.
“My small town roots are the thing that has always kept me grounded,” Vondra said. “No matter where I worked or traveled, I always knew home – the place that shaped my character.”
A marketing and communications double major at Hastings College, Vondra participated on the volleyball and softball teams, served on the student executive council and public relations council, and worked in the admissions office. She recalls her time on campus as an incredible chapter with a loving, enriching community.
“The people and opportunities challenged me to become a lifelong learner,” Vondra said.
After graduation, Vondra lived in Denver for two years before retracing her roots back to Nebraska.
She and her spouse, Jeremiah, who will be married 25 years this coming June, live in Crete, and opened Vondra Veterinary Clinic in 2007, where Jeremiah is a veterinarian. Their daughter, Tori ‘25, is following her father’s footsteps and pursuing her doctorate of veterinary medicine through a joint program with the University of Nebraska and Iowa State University. Son, Quinlan, is a sophomore at Wayne State College, studying manufacturing and construction management.
Vondra spent most of her adult life chasing significance and validation from the world, working with industries and well-known brands in her career. In 2013, she joined Cabela’s on the financial services side of the business; during the next five years, she grew exponentially and advanced into a leadership role. By 2018, Cabela’s was acquired by Bass Pro Shops, resulting in many of Vondra’s work family being displaced, furloughed or unemployed. While she was one of 40 asked to stay on during the company’s transition, she also found herself working 60- to 80-hour weeks to convert half a century’s worth of work within less than 18 months.
“As much as I hate to say it, my work owned me,” Vondra said. “When we finally navigated through 2018 and 2019, we thought, ‘2020 will be the year everything normalizes.’ There was no leadership manual or class that could prepare us for taking our teams through 2020,” she said, referring to the COVID-19 pandemic.
When the calendar flipped to 2021, what Vondra had hoped would be a more promising, optimistic year, was one that she said “rocked her to the core and transformed her.”
Within the first few weeks of the new year, her father was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer and passed away just two and a half weeks following his diagnosis. Daughter, Tori, was involved in a serious car accident resulting in a traumatic brain injury.
“He was the anchor of our family, life of the party and my protector,” Vondra said of her father. “Losing my dad was hard, but [Tori’s accident] was unimaginable. Suddenly, the title, the salary, the schedule seemed to have little meaning as I reflected on God’s purpose for my life.”
Remarkably, Tori made a full recovery. But as Jody returned to the corporate scene, she realized that she wanted to have a greater impact on the world.
“I started to share my story with others, and it connected with people,” Vondra said. “God slowly started to reveal to me that maybe this pain and heartache had a purpose much greater than I could imagine. He has used my struggles and failures as my greatest growth and learning opportunities.”
And with that, Vondra stepped away from her corporate career and invested her life helping others experience God’s love and discover the best version of themselves through the founding of Perspective Elevation, L.L.C., where she implements leadership & growth training with individuals, teams and organizations. She has spoken at numerous events across the country and will travel to Washington, D.C., this fall to speak with leaders in healthcare.
“I believe people matter and everyone holds value,” Vondra said. “Life is a series of mountains and valleys. We learn who we are in the valley and discover who we want to become looking from the mountaintop.”
Vondra has also written a book, “The Country Road Perspective: Finding Purpose in the Journey,” in which she talks about life’s challenges and finding value and purpose in the least expected places. Her book is available for purchase on Amazon.