Sonja Eve Christopher was a contestant from Survivor: Borneo.
Despite being well-liked by her tribemates, Sonja's continuous stumbling in the first Immunity Challenge caused Tagi to lose. At the first Tribal Council, Sonja was voted out after being viewed as the tribe's weakest member. She has the distinction of being the first person ever voted out in the American Survivor franchise.
Profile[]
Retrieved from CBS.com
Name: Sonja Christopher
Age: 63
Marital Status: Single
Occupation: Musician
Hometown: Walnut Creek, CA
Survivor Quote: "I think this will be one of the greatest adventures of my life. I can imagine that every skill I've ever learned—as well as ones I'll have to develop on the island—will be called into play. I can hardly wait!"
Luxury Item: Ukulele
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.[1]
Survivor[]
A member of the Tagi tribe, Sonja helped boost her tribe's morale by playing her ukulele, which her tribemates enjoyed. Despite her popularity around camp, Sonja continuously fell and scraped her legs during the inaugural Immunity Challenge on Day 2, causing her tribe to lose and be sent to the first Tribal Council in Survivor history. After returning to camp, Sonja's tribemate Sean Kenniff tended to the injuries she sustained in the challenge.
As the following day's vote approached, it became apparent that Sonja was viewed as the weakest member of the tribe after her performance in the challenge. However, Stacey Stillman lobbied for the other women of the tribe to keep Sonja and vote out Rudy Boesch instead. While both Sonja and Kelly Wiglesworth agreed to this plan, Susan Hawk was more skeptical, not wanting to vote with Stacey. At Tribal Council, Susan joined the majority of the men in eliminating Sonja in a 4-3-1 vote. As a result, Sonja made history by being the first person voted out of Survivor.
| Episode | Tribe Affiliation |
Challenge | Challenge Type | Sit-Out? | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tagi | Quest for Fire | Reward/Immunity | None | Lost |
| Voted Out, Day 3 | |||||
| Episode | Sonja's Votes |
Voted Against Sonja |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rudy | Dirk, Rudy, Sean, Susan |
| Voted Out, Day 3 | ||
Post-Survivor[]
- Sonja used her $2,500 consolation prize into a cache large enough to finance the expansion of a Walnut Creek church. Seven years after the show, Sonja's funds raised to more than a million dollars.[2]
- Sonja attended the Survivor: Marquesas and Survivor: Thailand Reunion Show.
- Sonja appeared in an episode of the medical crime drama TV series Diagnosis: Murder.[3]
- On January 9, 2010, Sonja attended Survivor's 10-year anniversary party.
- In 2019, Sonja and a few other Survivor: Borneo castaways met up in Clarksville.[4]
Death[]
Sonja passed away on April 26, 2024.[5]
Trivia[]
- Sonja's luxury item was a ukulele.
- Sonja, Kelly Wiglesworth, and Stacey Stillman are the first contestants to reside in California during filming.
- Sonja was the first lesbian Survivor contestant.
- Sonja was the oldest woman to play Survivor.
- Sonja was one of two women over the age of 60 years to play Survivor. The other is Gillian Larson in Gabon.
- Sonja and B.B. Andersen are the only castaways to be born in the 1930s.
- Sonja was the first ever Survivor contestant to be voted out.
- Sonja was also the first contestant to receive a vote against them, by virtue of Susan Hawk casting the first vote in the show's history.
- Sonja was tied with Jim Lynch for being the oldest first person voted out of a season.
- Prior to her passing, Sonja gave the Tagi Buff she wore on the island to Survivor 46 contestant Liz Wilcox.[6]
References[]
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20001017104233/http://www.cbs.com/primetime/survivor/survivors/sonja.shtml
- ↑ http://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/archives/survivor/2008_Jan_28_sonja_christopher_winnings
- ↑ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0160625/
- ↑ https://clarksvillenow.com/local/original-cast-of-survivor-reunites-in-clarksville/
- ↑ Bucksbaum, Sydney (April 28, 2024). "Sonja Christopher, first person voted out of Survivor, dies at 87". Entertainment Weekly. https://ew.com/sonja-christopher-dead-first-person-voted-out-survivor-8639973. Retrieved April 28, 2024.
- ↑ https://twitter.com/TheLizWilcox88/status/1783979083400978858
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