Team Taji Biography
Richard Hatch(The Winner):Richard currently runs his own business as a corporate trainer and consultant, conducting seminars on numerous topics including, conflict management, team building, practical negotiation and public speaking. In addition, he is a licensed real estate agent and has worked as a car salesman and bartender. He spent five years in the Army, initially enlisting and then becoming a West Point Cadet.
Richard is halfway through the Masters' program in education and counseling at Providence College in Rhode Island. Past studies have included oceanography and marine biology at Florida Institute of Technology, management at The United States Military Academy and general studies at George Mason University. He earned his Bachelor's degree in Management and Applied Behavioral Sciences through National-Louis University.

Richard describes himself as bright, rational, spontaneous and humorous - "just as comfortable running a meeting in a boardroom as attending the annual nude weenie roast of the American Society of Harley Davidson Enthusiasts." He enjoys provocative and meaningful conversation, any sport involving water (snorkeling, spear fishing, swimming, etc.) and camping.

Richard is from and currently lives in Newport, Rhode Island. He is single and has an adopted son, Christopher. His birth date is April 8, 1961.


Kelly Wiglesworth: Kelly is certified in swift water rescue and currently working as a guide on the Kern River in Nevada. She is a former student of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Previous employment includes a job as an outdoor guide for UNLV's Outdoor Adventures, a campus run outdoor activities organization, and working as a waitress.
When describing herself, she uses the terms "creative," "confident" and "outgoing." Of her many accomplishments, she is most proud of having spent 21 days rowing her own boat through the Grand Canyon and being able to touch her tongue to her nose. She enjoys dancing, whitewater kayaking and snowboarding during her free time. Her favorite television show is "The Simpsons" and favorite feature film is "To Kill A Mockingbird."

Kelly currently resides in Kernville, Nevada, with her boyfriend, Tracy, and her dog, Flower. She is a member of Swiftwater Rescue and supports Friends of the River. Her birth date is June 24, 1977.

FINAL WORDS: There's not a whole to say. I got pretty far, of course I would liked to have won, but I didn't. It's not a big deal. I got down to the final two, and I busted my ass to get here. The only thing that got me down to the final two was me, I think.

As far as tonight goes, the jury was pretty much as I expected. And as for Sue, she's thirty-eight-years-old and extremely immature. I learned early on in the game. I had befriended her; I trusted her and she betrayed me. She was lying to me, and was plotting against me from very early on. I realized that and I knew that. Therefore I decided not to trust her, not to be friends with her, not to be honest with her, for my own protection.

I think she is extremely bitter that I got further in the game than she did. I think it was bad form what she did and what she said tonight. Everything she said to me was a complete description of how she acted towards me, and did to me in this game. I think it's pretty funny she's that pissed off, that bitter and that much of a bad sport that she had to resort to that.

I just really wanted to get through this game as sanely as possible, and as true to myself as possible. I want to walk away proud. I didn't win, but I'm proud of myself and how far I got. I'm proud of what I did.



Rudy Boesch:Rudy joined the Navy in April of 1945 and immediately volunteered for "secret and hazardous duty" with the Amphibious Scouts and Raiders, highly classified naval commando units. In 1951, six years after Scout and Raider training at Fort Pierce, Florida, Rudy completed UDT (Underwater Demolition Teams) training in Little Creek, Virginia, and was assigned to UDT-2 (redesigned as UDT-21 in 1953). He remained in UDT-21 for the next 11 years. During this period, he completed numerous specialized schools and deployed routinely to the Mediterranean and Caribbean areas with the Naval Amphibious Forces. Rudy became a proficient combat swimmer and expert in small-boat operations. In 1962, Rudy was one of the 50 hand-selected officers of the original SEAL (Sea-Air-Land) Team TWO, becoming one of their most distinguished members.
In 1967, Rudy was advanced to the rank of Master Chief Petty Officer and, between combat tours, served as the senior enlisted position of Command Master Chief. From 1968-1970, Rudy completed two combat deployments to Vietnam. Among his numerous awards, Rudy earned the Bronze Star Medal for heroic action during more than 45 combat operations. During and after his stint in Vietnam, Rudy was delegated the "Chief SEAL," and set physical and operational standards at SEAL Team TWO.

In the late 1980's, Rudy became the Naval Special Warfare Community "Bull Frog," a distinguishing award presented to the SEAL serving the longest time on active duty. Instead of retiring, Rudy was selected as the Senior Enlisted Advisor to USSOCOM. In August of 1988, Rudy headed to Tampa, Florida and entered into the "inner circle" of the Special Operations Command to advise on all enlisted matters of the Joint command. For his extraordinary performance, Rudy was awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal - an award not often given to an enlisted man.

Master Chief Rudy retired from the U.S. Navy after completing over 45 years continuous activity. He was honorably discharged on August 1, 1990. Rudy and Marge, his wife of 42 years, are now involved in extensive volunteer work. In 1992, Rudy captained a 38' power boat during the "Americas Cup 1992" event. In 1996, he captained a support boat at the Summer Olympic Games. He continues as a Red Cross Volunteer and drives support vehicles and performs essential services during disaster-relief operations. He is also a volunteer for the Virginia Beach Police Department. Involved with many organizations, Rudy is a founding member of the UDT-SEAL Association and a founding member of the Association's Board of Directors, having once served as their President. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Special Operations Fund.

Rudy currently lives in Virginia Beach, Virginia. He and Marge have three children, Ellen Marie, Patricia Ann and Barbara Jean, and one granddaughter, Kelsey. His birth date is January 20, 1928.

FINAL WORDS:I never thought I'd come this far, because in the beginning you needed to be an athlete to compete. I got three votes, then I got two votes, then I got one vote and then they forgot about me. I figured I was right in the middle, where I wanted to be. Today was the first time I got a vote since a month ago. It was the fatal vote. I'm sure tomorrow Kelly will win it. Just like Jeff said, Richard stepped on a lot of toes. I might have given her a bit of competition, but she probably would've won it anyway. I think my military training helped with this. I've lived on islands before for up to ninety days. I knew what to expect. I didn't think it was going to be this easy. I didn't think they were going to give us food or water or anything like that. Once I found out about that, it was only a matter of doing thirty-nine days. My advice for anybody who plays this game is form an alliance and stick with it.


Susan Hawk:Born in Waukesha, Wisconsin, Susan attended Waukesha South Campus High School. Currently employed as a truck driver, she previously owned and operated a hunting and fishing camp in N.W. Ontario, Canada. Prior to that, she worked as a horse trainer and a waitress/bartender.
Susan's three favorite hobbies are hunting, swimming and fishing. She enjoys hunting birds with her dogs, Ellie and Stinky. She describes herself as motivated, resourceful, and flexible. Her favorite television shows are "The Drew Carey Show" and "Who's Line is It Anyway?" Her favorite feature film is "Papillion" (starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman) and she prefers to listen to 60's and 70's rock and roll music.

A perfect day for Susan begins at 2:00 AM to walk the dogs. She would be at work by 5:00 AM delivering concrete, and be home by 6:00 PM for a quick run in the woods with husband, Tim, and of course Ellie and Stinky, who would be looking for pheasants. Returning home, they would eat dinner and retreat to the hot tub for a romantic evening.

Susan currently resides in Palmyra, Wisconsin. She is a member of the Wisconsin Road Team, an organization of truck drivers that travel throughout the state to teach student drivers how to share the road safely with big trucks. Her birth date is August 17, 1961.
FINAL WORDS:It's been a blast. It was very, very much fun. I said it would be great if I could finish in the last four or five and I finished in the top four. Hey that's good enough for me. I didn't expect a whole lot more.

Outside of the weather, and being cold when it rained at night, and the sand fleas this was a lot easier for me. To make my money doing this is easier than driving a truck to Chicago every day of the week. That's a lot worse than being out here in the bush. It was neat being on a team and I'm still on a team until this is aired.

Meeting the people and playing the alliance thing, it was a lot of fun. It was a lot of interaction with people. I haven't had a chance to have lot of interaction with people in a long time. Because of my job I'm in the truck and driving all day. So thank you for letting me be here and if I had a chance I would do it again.


Sean Kenniff: The middle child of three, Sean was born in Massapequa, New York. His father worked as a firefighter for New York City while his mother maintained her work as a homemaker. Graduating from Massapequa High School, Sean immediately began his studies the following fall at the State University of New York at Binghamton where he eventually received a Bachelor of Science degree in biology.
While other kids opted for spring break in college, Sean stayed behind to save his money in order to get through medical school. He attained his M.D. through New York Medical College. Upon graduation, he then spent four years with the Long Island Jewish Medical Center (a division of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine), serving his last year as their Chief Resident.

As a neurologist, Sean maintained a private practice that allotted him the privileges to work for the Long Island Jewish Medical Center, the North Shore University Hospital (an affiliate of Cornell University) and St. Francis University Hospital (an affiliate of Columbia University). At age 30, with full intentions of resuming his profession at a later date, he's taken a break to explore other avenues of interest.

An amateur writer, Sean wrote a yet-to-be published psychological thriller which he hopes to someday develop into a television show. He's also written the sequel. He indulges his artistic impulses through sketching and writing poetry. He also finds time for boxing at the Westbury Police Athletic League.

Sean currently lives in Carle Place, New York. His birth date is Nov. 27, 1969.

FINAL WORDS:They want me to say something after I just took that lonely walk when your friends slice your throat wide open on national TV. Nah, I'm just kidding I don't have any hard feelings towards those guys, they played the game.

I think that they know how they conducted themselves. They conducted themselves in a pretty sinister fashion and I think that will show up on tape, I think the American public will know that.

I think the jury right now is in a tough position because they are going to have to decide between people they dislike, myself included, depending on the result. There are people that I genuinely like on there, but there are some very callous, cold, and duplicitous people remaining in the contest. I like to think I was the last good person down. I hope that is the way America remembers me. I conducted myself very well here.

On this island you have the good the bad and the ugly but unfortunately right now the ugly is prevailing. I think most of the good people are sitting on the jury pool. I did gain fifteen friends, well maybe twelve or thirteen which nobody remaining can say, and when it comes down to it that's pretty priceless.


Dirk Been: Dirk graduated from Sauk Prairie High School before earning his bachelor's degree of arts in Religious Studies from Seattle Pacific University in Washington. He currently works as a substitute teacher while also helping to take care of his family's dairy farm.
Dirk loves fishing, dancing and blind dates. Having played basketball in high school and college, it is hands-down his favorite sport. He prefers to watch "The Simpsons" and "Saturday Night Live" on television, and declares "Indiana Jones: The Lost Ark" and "The Matrix" as his favorite movies. Describing himself as energetic, funny and loud, he is most proud of being involved with helping disadvantaged kids reach their full potential. He lists Martin Luther King, Jr. and Larry Bird as his personal heroes because he believes they are two examples of effective leaders who led by example.

Dirk's perfect day begins with an early morning fishing trip, followed by a competitive game of basketball until it's time to head for dinner at his favorite pizza place. Afterwards, he and his friends dance the night away.

Dirk resides in Spring Green, Wisconsin. His birth date is June 15, 1976.

FINAL WORDS:I guess I want to start by just thanking the Lord for this unbelievable blessing. This whole thing has been a wild trip. I want to thank the Lord for first of all sending his son Jesus Christ to die for me and for his entire creation so I can join him in Heaven one day. I want to thank him for sending me to another part of his beautiful creation. I want to thank Jesus my Lord for just giving me the strength and the mind, the body and the health just to be part of something like this.

I want to thank the Lord for the beautiful team he blessed me with. I want to thank the Lord for Sonja and the person he created in her. I want to thank the Lord for Stacey and the person he created in her. I want to thank him for Sean. I want to thank him for Rudy. I want to thank him for Richard. I want to thank the Lord for everyone else involved in the cast. I want to thank him for the crew and everybody involved. It has been an incredible blessing for me. Thank the Lord for Mark for allowing me to be here and for everyone who picked me.

I want to thank the Lord for the beautiful weather we've had here. I want to thank the Lord for the protection we've had since we've been here. I want to thank the Lord for the blessing of food every day. I want to thank the Lord for his plan. I want to thank the Lord for allowing me to fail. If I've failed in some way, I'm very surprised. I thank the Lord for the surprise of being here tonight. I'm completely surprised for being taken out this early. I thank the Lord for that because I know he's got a plan for me to move on somewhere else.

I've got to thank God for the awesome opportunity. If anybody watching hasn't had the opportunity to meet God through Jesus Christ, let me tell you it's unbelievable. The spirit will change your life today. If you want to take care of it, just come talk to me we'll handle it right now. I'll whip the word. Actually I left my bible back at the camp just in case anybody needed it, just in case I was voted off tonight. Anyway, we can still pray tonight. The Lord has given me so much and this show is just a continuation of it.

Tomorrow I have no clue what the Lord will give me and I'm so thankful for this entire event in my life. It just blows my mind. It's a blessing from God and I know that. I'm not sure why he yanked me so quick, but I know I tried my best. I had the most fun I could. I worked the hardest I could. I went after it and some people didn't see it that way, so I'm gone. The word tells us we're more than conquerors. What does the Lord not have his hand in? He has his hand in everything. I was voted out for a reason. I don't know that, but the Lord will make it clear. I still can't believe I couldn't catch a fish. Maybe I'm not as good a fisherman as I thought, but you know something like this challenges you.

I felt like I answered the call the best I could. Obviously it wasn't good enough. I couldn't go the distance. The only reason I came here was to go the distance and there wasn't a day until I saw that third vote I didn't think I would make it. Until I saw that I thought I was going the distance. I did in my heart what I thought was right. I thank the Lord for the strength to be able to stand up, just to do what's right. It's not a problem for me to be cut tonight, because I'll be kicking it somewhere else tomorrow and somewhere the next day. I'm very thankful. Thank you God. Thank you Lord. Thank you Jesus Christ. Thank you Holy Spirit. Thanks for all those supporting and praying for me. I love you guys. I love everything going on here. You guys take of your selves. I've got some partying to do y'all.


Stacey Stillman: Stacey lives in San Francisco and practices corporate law at a law firm that specializes in representing technology companies. She earned her JD degree from New York University School of Law in 1998 and completed her undergraduate degree at the State University of New York at Binghamton in 1994, with a combined BA degree in both Physics and the Politics & Philosophy of Law.
Although she now resides on the West Coast, Stacey spent the majority of her life on the East Coast, growing up on Long Island and attending school in upstate New York and Manhattan.

The three adjectives Stacey uses to describe herself are intuitive, direct and sarcastic. She is most proud of remaining optimistic about life and people despite experiencing some emotionally difficult times, including overcoming thyroid cancer. Her perfect day would be taking a long hike along the coastal bluff and redwoods, followed by a foot rub and nap, and, finally, enjoying a gourmet dinner with good wine and great friends.

She has just been approved as a volunteer for the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of San Francisco program, and is awaiting assignment to a little girl. Stacey is currently single and enjoying her own "reality" living situation with four roommates and one dog. Her birth date is Aug. 11, 1972.

FINAL WORDS: I hear that those guys had to hike back in the thunder, lightning and the torrential rain, which I'm pretty happy about, because I'm really pissed off that they voted me off. They kicked off their bug-eating hero instead of their food stealing, stumbling, ornery old Navy Seal. I don't know how I feel about that.

I think Rudy pulled a brilliant political move with his little ageism speech. I think he got a couple of guilt votes that way. Sean probably would have been the swing vote. I think Rudy pulled Sue over to his side. She's an interesting character. Before the first vote too, Kelly and I spoke about who we were going to vote off. She was really strongly against Rudy, because we wanted to keep Sonja around. We thought we could keep a woman majority and probably keep a balance of power that way. Sue told me one thing then did another and she did the exact same thing on the last vote. She told me she was going to vote Rudy off and she voted against me when the vote came out. I turned to her and said," You changed your vote again Sue. "Then I walked away. It will be interesting to see how Sue's dynamic plays out for the rest of the show.

I think largely the reason I was voted off was because the group feels physical strength is the most important quality to win the immunity challenges, which I completely disagree with. The fact is they don't know how strong I really am, because they are all so busy proving their own strength. I don't think they really value mental strength in that camp yet. I think the contributions I made for the camp are more quiet contributions. I think I probably came off as shy, which is rare for me. I've never been in such a magnanimous group before.


Sonja Christopher:Sonja was born and raised in Olympia, Washington. Her studies at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, the University of Oslo in Norway, the University of Washington in Seattle and the University of California, Berkeley, produced a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology, along with a teaching credential.
Before retiring, Sonja worked as an investment counselor, tennis teacher and elementary school teacher. She currently works part-time as a music therapist, playing the banjo as she leads sing-alongs at Alzheimer's centers. She also enjoys performing in local community theater. Her favorite sport is swimming, although it used to be tennis, which she played competitively for a number of years. She also enjoys playing Bridge.

In December of 1997, Sonja was diagnosed with invasive breast cancer. She underwent pre-surgical chemotherapy, followed by lumpectomy and radiation and has resumed a full, healthy life.

Sonja describes herself as courageous, open and fun-loving. In describing her perfect day, Sonja would wake up feeling good and counting her blessings. She would enjoy a cup of coffee while reading the paper before heading out to exercise (walk, bike, swimming or yoga). Afterwards, she would connect with a friend by phone or over lunch before or after performing at a nursing home. At some point in her day, she would discover a new interest, "be there" for someone in need, have a new idea or fix something around the house and find that all the desk work which requires a good deal of her time would miraculously get done by itself. Capping off her perfect day would be an evening at the theatre or movies with a dear friend, after which she would crawl into bed with a good book.

Sonja currently resides in Walnut Creek, California, about 45 minutes from her son, Dan. She is on the Board of Directors at her the Unitarian Universalist Church and was instrumental as a fundraiser in the building of the Regional Center for the Arts. She is also is a member of the Diable Light Opera Company and Contra Costa Musical Theatre, and also participates in local video and computer clubs. Her birth date is Jan. 28, 1937.

FINAL WORDS: I think being a Survivor has been an awesome experience. Being first to be voted out is a little humiliating. On the other hand, I think the team did the right thing. They are a terrific group of people, very strong physically, and I think in their shoes, I would have probably done they same thing - vote out the weakest member.

Last night at the competition, I certainly felt like I made the team lose. But I am going away with the feeling that I really bonded with these people in a genuine way and I know that's the rules of the game.

And maybe tonight I will get a shower, and a meal!

Who Won?
Richard Hatch. After 39 days of hard island living, the 39-year old corporate trainer from Newport, Rhode Island, won Survivor. For his troubles and toils, he takes home a million dollars, not to mention a Pontiac Aztek. Viewers may recall Rich's prediction on Day 1 on the island: "I've got the million-dollar check written in my name."

The final three days of island living saw a nightly Tribal Council. The Final Four castaways (Rudy, Rich, Sue and Kelly) were narrowed down to three, then a final two.


Sue was the first to go. Kelly won immunity at the Fallen Comrades Immunity Challenge, a competition in which the final four were quizzed on how much they knew about their former voted-off tribemates. Kelly knew the most, but Sue was a close second. In last place was Rich, ironic given that he's a communications expert yet seemed to know the least about his former tribemates; Rich, however, said he was not surprised by the outcome. With her third consecutive immunity in hand, Kelly was untouchable. Ultimately, after the first tie vote (between Rich and Sue), Kelly switched her vote to join Rudy against Sue. "Sorry," she said after voting off her former island confidante.

With Sue gone, it was left to Rich, Kelly, and Rudy to endure the rite of passage necessary to be crowned winner of Survivor. Starting at dawn, just hours after voting Sue off, the trio slathered their bodies in gray mud and then walked on hot coals. Finally, each had to place one hand on the Immunity Idol. The last castaway to remove their hand would gain immunity.

As the equatorial sun rose higher and higher in the sky, all three maintained contact with the carved token. However, Rich removed his hand voluntarily when offered a snack of orange slice ( Rich removes his hand voluntarily). At four hours and 11 minutes in, Rudy inadvertently removed his while shifting positions, giving the contest to Kelly, now with four consecutive immunity rewards in hand and a guaranteed spot in the final two.

This sealed Rudy's fate. Kelly cast the lone vote at that night's Tribal Council, tossing Rudy off the island after 38 heroic days. The final tribal council would come down to just Kelly and Rich. The final votes would be cast by the seven-member jury of Sean, Colleen, Rudy, Sue, Greg, Jenna, and Gervase.

Though it's hard to pinpoint exactly which action won victory for Rich, Sue's impassioned speech to the jury will long be remembered as vital to the cause. Saying she "couldn't decide whether to vote for the snake [Rich] or the rat [Kelly]," Sue ultimately argued that the jury decide the way "Mother Nature intended it to be, for the snake to eat the rat." Greg, true to character, merely had Rich and Kelly pick a number between 1 and 10. Jenna asked an interesting question: If Rich or Kelly could choose two other castaways to be in the final two, who would they be? Rich picked Rudy and Greg; Kelly picked Sonja and Gretchen.

In the end, however, it was just one vote that swung the game to Rich. But that was enough. He rose, and then calmly accepted the congratulations of Kelly and the jury.