Survivor Exit Interview: Jacquie Berg

By Tom Rose
Fancast.com

Last time on Survivor: Gabon - Earth’s Last Eden, a dramatic reshuffling of the Fang and Kota tribes knocked some alliances off the table, and the impact had the most effect on Jacquie Berg, a star saleslady in the medical device business who was content to remain an unpeeled layer of The Onion Alliance.

Jacquie had toiled away in relatively happy anonymity until Crystal uttered her name at the round robin picks for the new tribe rosters. Safely lodged between the target on Ace’s back and the steady decline in Kelly’s popularity, Jacquie should have looked forward to coasting into the merge.

But when Fang got the mistaken impression that Kelly would be a bigger benefit to the alliance on the return of Sugar from Exile Island, the axe swooped down on Jacuie’s neck. Too bad. Talking with her the day after, I learned she had a lot more to bring to the game.

And I found out how she’ll spend her time post-Survivor: Mentoring children through her own charitable organization. Let’s learn more about this motivated motivator.

FC: Hi Jacquie, how are you?

JB: I’m OK. How are you?

FC: Well you sound good. I mean after last night’s episode I would think you’d be a little devastated.

JB: That’s true, all the emotions resurfaced last night. I was so mad!

FC: Sure, it’s been awhile since it actually happened, but then when you relive it…

JB: Yeah, it sucks! I’ve never been so disappointed in a competition like this. I had my heart set on winning.

FC: And you were doing so well too. You were sort of under the radar on Kota, but with the shakeup it seems the spotlight found you all of a sudden.

JB: I know. I was trying to stay under the radar, forming alliances without anybody knowing and I thought all the way to the end I had my gameplan set in stone. But it really threw me for a loop when the tribes got switched.

FC: And the way they edit the episode it doesn’t really dawn on you until almost the moment it happens.

JB: Yeah exactly.

FC: Up until that point I thought that Kelly was definitely the target.

JB: And so did I. I knew there was a possibility of me going, but I was really putting it all out there, because Me, Sugar and Ace had formed an alliance to take us to the end so I was thinking way far ahead. I was devastated that they wanted me out before Kelly.

FC: Was there a sinking feeling when the tribes got reshuffled?

JB: Yeah, I was praying that Crystal wasn’t gonna yell out my name. I was looking off in the distance. I “pretended” like I didn’t hear her call my name, ’cause I knew I’d be in a minority, and because of being in Kota, I wasn’t excited at all.

FC: Even though you could look at that moment as a shift or a change with possibilities?

JB: (laughing) You’re an optimist. I walked into that tribe and thought “this sucks!”

FC: I did notice when you got to Fang’s camp you looked around with a look of disgust.

JB: Well, it was kinda weird. Coming from Kota, everybody’s so positive, kind of like being on vacation. But I went over to Fang and it was this somber, nobody trusts anybody atmosphere, everyone complained and it was a major culture shock.

FC: We knew that as viewers, but did you have an inkling of how bad things were at Fang?

JB: Yep. We all kinda sensed it. You could tell they would come into the challenges knowing they would lose and no camraderie.

FC: And they’re voting strategy is to knock out a strong player. That’s the second time Fang did that, Micheele Chase having been a victim at the first tribal council.

JB: Yeah. Fang doesn’t make very good decisions. One reason for that is Crystal is their team leader and you can see she’s trying to surround herself with weak people. I don’t know what game she’s playing. She has no idea how to win a challenge. One, she’s not very much of an athlete herself and Two, she’s like getting rid of all the strong people.

FC: Maybe it’s a reverse psychology going on there. And for an Olympian you’d think she’d be a little more athletic.

JB: Yeah, it’s so weird because I used to run the 400, that’s her race, but I really didn’t have any respect for her. She’s not a very good leader.

FC: We’ll see how that plays out since there’s nothing but surprises in this game. But what’s your Survivor story. How did you get all the way to the Golden Circle?

JB: I applied on a whim, working 80 hours a week at my job and I needed a change. I just thought this is a perfect challenge for me. I was training for triathlons, I run every single day, and Survivor is such a physical as well as a mental challenge, I just wanted a new experience.

FC: Were you a fan of the show before you applied?

JB: Yeah, probably the only reality show I’ve ever watched. And all my friends thought I would’ve won it. I got so many calls last night, people were so upset. Usually in situations like that I can read people so well, so I thought I would have a huge advantage in the game but, a lot of it’s luck.

FC: Tell us about Ace.

JB: I liked Ace. I thought he would’ve been great to bring to the Final 4 because I didn’t think he’d get very many votes. He’s so strong and knowledgeable and he’s got a very good aura about him actually.

FC: He’s a unique character and he seems to be the focus of the game from the beginning.

JB: The people who felt intimidated by that, I didn’t understand. I just thought he only helped. That’s what happened with Kelly. We had no idea Kelly didn’t like him until that tribal council. So we all turned against her because we all honestly liked Ace.

FC: Who else were you close to in the game?

JB: Marcus, Charlie and Corinne were the three people I got close with. And Sugar.

FC: That’s interesting. It seemed like the logic behind voting you out was because Kelly was closer to Sugar than you were.

JB: No. Kelly and Sugar didn’t like each other.

FC: That makes the vote even more mystifying.

JB: They knew she would be more genuine in their alliance. If I tried to get myself in there, I would’ve flipped on them as soon as Sugar got back. So I felt like that there was their one stong move in the game - to get rid of me. (laughing)

FC: Do you have a prediction about the winner?

JB: I guess it would have to be my friends in the game. Sugar, Marcus or Kelly.

FC: Will Survivor lead to something more for you?

JB: I’ve had a lot of time to reflect, to see what I’m passionate about and now I’m devoting my time to a charity that links Mentors up with adolescent children.

FC: Can we give your fans a link to a website?

JB: That would be great! It’s called “2nd Family” and it’s pretty revolutionary in the non-profit world. It’s a social networking site with Mentors giving directly to an underpriveled child, where you can motivate and guide them.

Personally, growing up my brother really shaped my life for me, helping me go after all my dreams, including Survivor, and I felt that every kid should grow up with that. Just an inspirational email every week from somebody with a successful career can make a world of difference.

FC: That sounds really worthwhile. I’m so sorry you got voted off the game. I was looking forward to finding out more about you.

JB: I know. It was really sad. (laughs)

FC: There were a few people I wanted to see go WAY before you.

JB: Thank you!

FC: Thanks for talking with us today. We wish you good luck in the future!

JB: Thank you. You too!