Lieutenant Jennifer Matthews
Name Jennifer Matthews
Position Chief Engineering Officer
Rank Lieutenant
Character Information
| Gender | Female | |
| Species | Human | |
| Age | 27 | |
| Date of Birth | ||
| Place of Birth |
Physical Appearance
| Height | 5' 7" | |
| Weight | 135 lbs | |
| Hair Color | Brown | |
| Eye Color | Brown | |
| Physical Description |
Family
| Spouse | ||
| Children | ||
| Father | Leonard Matthews | |
| Mother | Cassandra Matthews | |
| Brother(s) | Jameson & Charles | |
| Sister(s) | ||
| Other Family |
Personality & Traits
| General Overview | Jenni heeds little caution with her words and has no problem making her opinion known. She is very self-aware and assertive, eager mainly to do her job to the best of her ability. Though she finds few men attractive, she doesn't let them know until either they tell her or she can't hold it in any longer. | |
| Strengths & Weaknesses | + Skilled tinkerer + Team Player + Creative + Competitive - Loner - Slightly Claustrophobic |
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| Ambitions | To see the galaxy and all its wonders | |
| Hobbies & Interests | Music (violin), running, theater/drama |
| Personal History | Jennifer (Jenni) Matthews was the third child (and only girl) born to Leonard and Cassandra Matthews. She was well received by her brothers Jameson and Charles, who weren't very happy to have a sister, but soon learned to live with it. Leonard was employed by Grayson Fusion Industries as a high-level technician. In 2265, GFI had promoted Leonard to Manager of the plant at the New Aries Colony on Earth's moon. It was good news, yes, but Leonard wasn't home as often. Two months later, on her weekly visit to see her husband at work, Cassandra and Leonard were caught in the middle of a catastrophe. The primary generator overloaded, prompting a reactor core breach. Cassandra was in the middle of the plant searching for Leonard when the explosion occurred. She was killed instantly. Leonard was in the restroom when it happened and was knocked unconscious. Starfleet Rescue Teams were sent in, and Leonard was one of the lucky few to be dragged out before the other generators started to overload. Half of New Aries Colony was forced to evacuate before Starfleet and Civilian engineers were able to shut down the plant. While the citizens of the colony were shipped elsewhere until the plant could be rebuilt, months passed before the Matthews children were reunited with their father who was hospitalized with radiation poisoning. The children were sent to live with their aunt and were later joined by their father. Leonard was off his feet for three years and trapped in his bed due to the extreme exposure to the radiation. Leonard never regained use of his legs and was confined to a motorized hoverchair for everyday life. Eventually, Leonard returned to work, but not as manager. He became a safety inspector for the same plant. The family, however, never overcame the loss of Cassandra. They did learn to cope with it. Both of Jenni's brothers went on to medical school to become doctors, in hope of finding a way to restore their father's legs. Jenni almost took the same route, but her father encouraged her to not worry about him and find something she was good at. She had a habit with tinkering with things and problem solving, so she enrolled in Starfleet Academy, planning on seeing the galaxy. Four years later, upon her graduation, she was assigned to the USS Niagara as an Systems Engineer. Her service aboard the Niagara was exemplary, though her crewmates dubbed her a threat to their careers. Jenni had learned not long after her initial assignment that the Niagara’s reputation was close to Starbase 8, known for struggling to get the job done and a haven for those who cared less about their careers. The Chief Engineer found Jenni to be one of the most reliable and trustworthy of his crew, and even tried to get her to become his Assistant Chief. Jenni refused, not wanting to be on the Niagara longer than she needed to be, and she knew that rising up the ladder on such a troublesome ship would not do her any favors. After a little more than a year of service on the Niagara, Jenni transferred to the Akula-class USS sh’Paveress which rarely found its way back to a starbase thanks to multiple patrols along the Romulan border. There she spent two years before transferring to the Soyuz-class USS Tereshkova, this time as a warp drive supervisor. Aboard the USS Tereshkova, Jenni put her career first and started working her way up a competitive ladder to the Assistant Chief position. Her abilities were tested in every manner, including her resourcefulness. Oftentimes, the Engineering staff had to create ingenious solutions due to lack of proper supplies and technology. Eventually, as she spent more time on the assignment, her age combined with her technological prowess began to diffuse the issues with her crewmates and respect was earned. Nevertheless, she sought opportunities elsewhere within Starfleet... a chance to establish herself among a new crew as a department head, hoping to forever rid herself of these unfortunate issues. New ships might have been rolling off the line, but Chief Engineer billets were hard to find. If they were available, they were mostly aboard the older freighters and haulers. It wasn't the life that Jenni wanted, and she was willing to spend longer in a junior or deputy role as long as it gave her access to the newer classes like the Excelsior and Constellation. Soon, she would be able to put her strategy to work as Assistant Chief Engineer aboard the newly commissioned USS Amaterasu. What she could not predict, however, was that her coveted promotion to Chief Engineer would come so abruptly... |
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| Service Record | 2278-2281: Starfleet Academy 2282: Assigned to USS Niagara, Systems Engineer 2283: Assigned to USS sh’Paveress, Systems Engineer 2285: Assigned to USS Tereshkova, Warp Drive Supervisor 2286: Promoted to Assistant Chief Engineer 2287: Assigned to USS Amaterasu, Assistant Chief Engineer 2287: Promoted to Chief Engineer |