"I wanted to be challenged physically and psychologically, and to do something different, to distinguish myself," he says. Jeff has certainly met those criteria-he now saves lives by jumping from a helicopter into raging seas.

As an operational rescue swimmer for the Coast Guard, stationed at the Coast Guard Air Station in Los Angeles, Jeff must constantly be mindful of sea predators, threatening weather conditions, and varying surf, all the while providing a calm and helpful hand to frantic victims.

Most of the cases in which he has been involved are routine rescues-"very few Perfect Storm types," he says-his job is still thrilling on a daily basis. This job has proven to be an extremely rewarding and beneficial challenge both physically and mentally.

"One thing that has helped me achieve this goal," he continues, "is something I learned very well at H-SC-the value of persistence."

One of his more interesting assignments wasn't a real life-saving mission. When the producers of the DVD version of the movie Castaway asked the Coast Guard to help with filming the "rescue" of the volleyball named Wilson, Tom Hanks' Man-Friday substitute, they chose Jeff for the job (above right). The producers chose a windy day, with an appropriately picturesquely choppy sea, so Jeff's jumps-he had to make three before the filmmakers were satisfied-were anything but routine.

Jeff Callard '98 jumping from a Coast Guard helicopter into the open sea.

Such a dynamic and demanding career requires a great deal of confidence, a quality that Jeff cultivated at Hampden-Sydney College.

"While I was a student at Hampden-Sydney, I was challenged as I had never been before. The tiny classes and close relationships with professors made me develop a firm belief in my own capabilities," Jeff says. "That self-confidence was essential in my open-sea rescue training."