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Blocking for Augustana hall of fame teammates D.J. Donlin, Bill O’Connor, and Terry Egger was a role Kurt Jonker readily accepted. He started three seasons at left offensive left tackle and received honorable mention on the 1979 All-North Central Conference team. Jonker was also a member of Augustana’s
1977-78 men’s NCC championship basketball team. The 1977 football season sticks out for Jonker. “It was Joel Swisher’s first year as head coach. We were 7-4 overall and 4-3 in the conference. We had the league’s leading pass offense with (quarterback) D.J. Donlin and (receiver) Terry Eggers. A shootout with Northern Iowa in the UNI Dome was a memorable game. “There was over 1,000 yards of offense by both teams and it was a battle of who scored last. We did, the defense held, and we won 35-27.”
Jonker signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1980 and remained with the team until the final cut. Two years later he was signed as a free agent by the San Francisco 49ers and again made it to the final cut. He played offensive tackle for the Oakland Invaders, Memphis Showboats, and the San Antonio Gunslingers of the United States Football League. He was an all-league first team choice at offensive tackle for the California Football League’s Twin Cities Cougars in 1980 and 1981. Drs. Arie Gaalswyk, Richard Forman, and Verlyn Lindell greatly influenced Jonker’s academic interests. “These three math department professors made studying integral calculus, differential equations, and linear algebra exciting and fun. Their humor and knowledge together made learning fun.”
Today Jonker is a technical team lead/senior application analyst with IBM. He was employed for 23 years with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota. Kurt and his wife, Juli Anne, are the parents of Michelle Mathews, Jesse Mathews, Seth Jonker, and Allissa Jonker.
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