Jonas Johnson (Oneida): Oneida Community Lacrosse Player Focusing On World Series of Youth Lacrosse This Summer

By Dan Ninham

“Oneida Community Lacrosse is my home team,” said Jonas Johnson, 14. “I have competed on Team WI, True Nationals, and will be competing on the Iroquois Nationals youth development team.”

Jonas is in the eighth grade at Oneida Nation “I am from the Oneida Nation of WI and a member of the Turtle Clan,” said Jonas. His parents are Willard and Kelly Jo Johnson.

“I started playing catch with my older brothers at four years old,” said Jonas. “I was pretty good at catching and passing. I started going to the fitness center to practice with my older brothers and I played my first actual game when I was a 5-year-old in Wausau on the Oneida Community Lacrosse U15 team.”

“We didn’t have a younger youth team for me to play on, so I had to play all the way up to U15. It was scary but I just loved lacrosse so much that I wanted to play. I was so little most of the players would take it easy on me,” added Jonas.

“When the Oneida Community Lacrosse program finally got a U10 team I was able to play with kids my age and be more competitive,” said Jonas.  “I would have to say that my main accomplishment is preparing to compete in the World Series of Youth Lacrosse this summer with the Iroquois Nationals.  WSYL is strictly a U14 tournament for best players all around the world.  The championship game will be broadcast on ESPN2.”

Tribal core values define who young and old lacrosse players are. Lacrosse players play for more than themselves and their team too. 

“I have learned that this game is to entertain our Creator,” said Jonas. “This game was here long before people were even around, and the game was played by animals in the spirit world. I have also learned that this game has medicine and is used to heal others. I have played traditional and non-traditional games and have learned to respect all things because of the game of lacrosse.”

“Lacrosse has taught me about my responsibilities of playing for our Creator and always playing with a good mind and good spirit,” said Jonas. “I try very hard to never get upset during a game. I never get angry at the refs or throw my stick. I learned to respect everything.”

The positive influence of teachers, family and coaches help guide student-athletes. 

“Keta Quiver was Jonas’s fifth grade teacher,” said dad Willard Johnson. “She also follows his lacrosse path. He is now in eighth grade. Keta has always been influential to him.”

“Jonas is a hardworking, conscientious, and respectful student who always stays on task,” said ONES fifth grade teacher Keta Quiver. “When given a task or assignment, Jonas gets right to work. If he get stuck on a problem he looks to his peers or teacher for guidance. When Jonas completes a task he will offer to assist anyone who may need help. Jonas is always polite, and respectful, especially by minimizing distractions in the classroom, following our classroom procedures, and always showing up to class with a smile.”

“He successfully balances academics by assuring he not only gets his homework done on time but by doing well on tests, all while also being a strong athlete. Jonas is a leader on and off the field. In the classroom, Jonas encourages other students and actively participates in classroom discussions. He is always willing to learn new concepts, have an open mind and a positive attitude. Jonas embodies all the qualities of our Oneida Nation School system which is responsible, respectful, and ready,” added Keta.

“My family has always been supportive to me,” said Jonas. “I am the youngest sibling in my family, and I have four older brothers and two older sisters. They have always tried to come to my games. My parents also positively influence me. They get me to all my practices and games. They have traveled all over for me. They work hard to pay for everything and keep me motivated.”

“I have also looked up to all the older OCL players who moved onto high school and college,” said Jonas. “A lot of those guys have influenced me and helped me with my game.”

“Lastly my coaches throughout the last nine years have all taught me a lot. Lyle Thompson from the PLL Cannons is my mentor. He played for the Iroquois Nationals. He is possibly the greatest player of lacrosse throughout the world.  He is so committed to his health, his team, his family and his culture.”

Dakota White, Jonas’s oldest brother, talked about his brother and lacrosse: “I was the first person in my immediate family to play lacrosse. Jonas immediately had an interest in the game after I started to play. He was either three or four years old when he became interested. I remember I would be in our yard practicing the fundamentals like grounds balls and cradling. Jonas would always come outside with his stick and join me. Jonas picked up the game pretty quick, the game came naturally to him. When we first started he would flinch when I would toss him the ball but that quickly went away because he would learn and adapt so quick. Eventually our three brothers would also pick up the game and even my sister for a short while.”

“Lacrosse became our family’s favorite sport. Jonas never had it easy on him starting out, and when he was little and beginning there was only one team for him to play on. The team consisted of other kids that were sometimes five and more years older than him. He was one of the smallest and youngest members of that team. Jonas would be in games sometimes matched up against guys that were twice his size. He never let it stop him and he was always having fun out there and trying his hardest despite unfavorable odds. As he got older and grew, his game would also grow,” added Dakota. 

“Jonas through the years would climb up the ladder and easily become the best player on any team he was on and a player to be feared and respected by opposing teams,” said Dakota. “He can always be found with his stick on him practicing and showing off his stick skills. Jonas travels to a lot of tournaments all over the U.S. and there’s always people and players who know him. I always joke and tell people that my brother is famous.” 

“Jonas is a very driven and dedicated player. He realizes that he is a very highly skilled player but never lets it stop him from learning new things and growing his game. Jonas in my opinion is a player who has defeated the odds and has surpassed other players including myself and is far from hitting his ceiling,” added Dakota. 

Former OCL lacrosse player Fox Christjohn admires the younger players in the program. He talked about one of the future stars: “Jonas always had a stick in his hand since he could walk. Growing up in a community where almost everyone picks up a stick at some point in life, Jonas still stuck out with his skill. Since he was a toddler I’ve always seen a stick in his hand. I’ve known Jonas for his whole life, I worked with him for a few years and I’ve never seen anyone as skilled and have the same lacrosse IQ in eighth grade. Many who watch him play from the sidelines are in awe when they see what he’s capable of at his age.”

“Jonas is unmatched for his skill and love for the game. He doesn’t think of the game as a sport, he plays because it’s his medicine, not only for him but the ones who watch him play. His talent will take him wherever he wants to go and only in eighth grade he will have a bright future for the sport. Jonas is a younger cousin of mine and the game of lacrosse has brought us closer, I’ve played college lacrosse and work with Jonas to hopefully one day get him onto a college team,” added Fox.

“Jonas, a helpful, considerate, patient young man,” said Butch Summers, OCL U15 coach. “When we have our lax camps, he’s the go to guy to help out. Some might disagree, but he is soft spoken, and he will tell you what’s up in a minute when on the field. Even then he’s calm, collected, when I say soft spoken, this is what I mean.”

“This kid has been playing since he was zero year old, lol. As players go through our program, we see several with the natural ability to do the fundamentals. Jonas has this, and this is what makes him very good at his craft, and from this he has come into his style of play,” added Butch. 

“He has played on both coasts and the Midwestern states,” said Butch. “He is playing for The Iroquois National team in their first ever World Games this year. It certainly is going to be fun watching him this year and I’m very proud to be one of his coaches this year.”

“I give credit to parents who foster their child’s dreams,” said Butch. “Willard and Kelly Jo are the parents, all their boys played for our program and are a big part of our core group. Willard coaches our U8’s, and Kelly Jo is a planner within our program. She is a major link with several other lax moms that keeps the canoe afloat and moving forward. Jonas is a player to keep your eye on, this kid is only 14, and a seasoned player already. Knowledgeable and respectful. A true asset to our game.” 

The pandemic have adjusted how coaches coach and players play in practice and competition.

“I have been working out a lot more due to the pandemic,” said Jonas. “I had virtual school for a whole year, so I started focusing my spare time to working out with my brothers at the gym. I would also run hills in the back of the Norbert Hill Center until winter came. During the month of October, me and my family got Covid-19, and we were all quarantined for a few weeks.  I was quarantined to my room for 14 days and I started lifting weights and doing pushups. I continued to do work outs, and since then I can tell I have gotten stronger.”

“I started loving lacrosse when I was four years old and am so grateful for how far it has brought me today,” said Jonas. “I tried out for the Nationals team when I was 12 and I made the team. We traveled to Maryland, North Carolina, and California with that team.  I was also picked as a Top 100 player through the Lacrosse America program.  I was selected by Kyle Harrison (PLL) to play on his tournament team ‘Legends’ in Pennsylvania and walked onto the field of the NCAA 2019 Championship game.”

“Competing in lacrosse has given me so many opportunities, and I am truly grateful,” said Jonas. “My ultimate goal will be to play D1 lacrosse for Syracuse or UAlbany.”

“I know I have a lot to learn, but that is my goal,” said Jonas.

Photo Credit: Byran Halona