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Helen Willink, Jocko WIllink's Wife

A brief look into the wife of Jocko Willink, her early life, career and family

Author:Emily Sanchez
Reviewer:James Pierce
Jan 23, 2021105.6K Shares1.4M Views
A lot of people around the world know Jocko Willink. A retired Navy Seal Lieutenant Commander, a bestselling author, a successful podcaster, and many more, he could easily pass as an exceptional symbol of success. Yet, we do not find a more befitting instance to the, albeit clichéd, saying, “Behind every successful man is a woman” than in his life.
Serving in the military is not always easy. To come out a heavily decorated officer is even harder. Yet, Jocko has given over 20 years of his life in service to his country. One of the major driving forces for him was his wife, Helen. She has been with him throughout his time in the Navy and also in his retirement. While Jocko was at the front keeping the peace, she made sure she kept the family together, giving her husband the freedom he needed to make exploits in the outside world. Helen Willink is a woman who loves to spend time with her family. Over the years, she has worked in the background propelling her husband to great excellence in the forefront.
Helen Louise Willink was born into a Christian family in England on 20 June 1970. Although the media has had its lens on her for years, beginning from when Jocko came into her life, little is known about Helen’s family and where they’d lived. But we know that she spent the major part of her childhood in England.
The couple first met in Bahrain when Jocko Willink was stationed there. Helen was by then working shifts in her first employment as a flight attendant. They were instantly attracted to each other. Their attraction to each other was so intense and immediate that it didn’t take them long to get married.
We all need someone to dedicate, no matter how small, a part of their lives to us, to be there for us in the name of love while we go after our dreams. Unfortunately, not many people get to find someone like that. For Jocko Willink, he was blessed enough to find that person in Helen. Even though little is known about Helen’s career, we can say she didn’t keep much of a professional career. Apart from running a fitness gym, she is a full-time family woman. She quit her job in the aviation industry immediately after her marriage to dedicate her life to building a family with Jocko. Helen runs a successful fitness gym and also acts as a great supporter of her husband’s various business endeavors.

Family

Helen and Jocko’s marriage is blessed with four lovely children: Freja, Rana, and Thorsen. There’s still no information in the public about the name of their last child.
Freja Willink was born on September 15 1999 in Waterbury CT, while Rana Willink was born on 13 March 2001 in San Diego CA. Thorsen was also born in the same place on 4 December a year later.
For years, Helen and Jocko have tried to keep their family away from the media. This was a personal decision by Jocko as he did not want his media life to affect the safety of his children. He once told the media that there are bad individuals he wishes to keep away from his family.
Jocko is known to have a grumpy and intimidating look. Helen claims this does not, in any way, stand on the way of his relationship with the children. He loves to spend time with them. He laughs with them and even does some of his training with them. He is also said to be a very protective father to them.
It is obvious in their children’s exploits that Helen and Jocko have instilled in them a sense of dedication to duty and hard work. This has made the entire family successful, especially in areas where their leadership skills are highly needed.
All the Willink’s children attended the prestigious Point Loma High School (PLHS), an institution known for churning out batch after batch of exceptionally gifted students.
Freja, the first daughter, is at the University of California, Berkeley, where she continues to do amazing things. Jocko Willink always talks about her relationship with her boyfriend, Hunk. Her romantic relationship with Hunk is not kept a secret from the family as he loves to spend time with Willink's family. The relationship may lead to marriage as they have loved each other for a long time.
The second daughter, Rana, a senior at PLHS, was the first ‘Point Wrestler’ since the 90s to qualify for the State wrestling tournament for the school. This is not a small feat for anyone to achieve. Her coach has said of her to be an exceptional influence on the rest of the team. She also doubles as the captain of the team. Rana is not only a great beauty with class, incomparable strength, and grace. She also exhibits academic brilliance by maintaining a 4.3 GP. Rana and Thorsen have also taken after their father and are already making a gradual move towards a professional stint in wrestling.
Thorsen, on his part, emerged third in the City League Championships and fifth in the Masters' Tournament at San Marcos High.
Jocko Willink served in the US Navy for 20 years, from 1990-2010, before retiring. During his time in the Navy, he scaled ranks until he became Lieutenant Commander, leading a SEAL team 3 against the Iraqi insurgents during the Iraqi wars.
Back home, he received accolades and was awarded the Silver and Bronze stars for his duty to the country.
When Jocko retired from active service, he went straight into business, first by signing up for a leadership training course after which he founded the Echelon Front, a consulting firm, with his best friend, Leif Babin.
Jocko is also a successful writer. One of his bestselling books is Extreme leadership: How the US Navy Seals Lead and Win. Other publications include The Dichotomy of Leadership, co-authored by Leif Babin; Way of the Warrior Kid; Discipline Equals Freedom: Field manual, and so on.
There’s no definite source on how much Helen earns. But she and her husband are reported to have assets to the sum of $5 million. Their sources of income vary. These include Victory MMA. Jocko Willink runs a weekly podcast with his friend, Echo Charles. From this, the family generates annual revenue of $1 million. Jocko also earns about $3 million from Jocko White Tea, his tea brand. He also makes money from his victorious engagements with Mixed Martial Art, his fitness gyms, and also from the sales and advertising of his books.
With these earnings, Helen Willink and her husband ensure they have a viable business empire and a comfortable lifestyle.
  • Like her husband, Jocko, Helen also has interest in fitness and takes charge of the training facilities very well.
  • Even though the Willinks sometimes do make brief appearances on media, Helen prefers they keep their lives private. This is to prevent negative feelings and comments towards them, especially their children.
  • She is a devoted mother. Helen hasn’t pursued a full career but has invested much of her time into building her family.
  • Helen doesn’t maintain an active social media presence. For someone completely mindful of her family’s privacy, this doesn’t come as a surprise. On her social media pages, she shares only snippets of her personal life, and that’s it.
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Emily Sanchez

Emily Sanchez

Author
James Pierce

James Pierce

Reviewer
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