The next season of Chief Stew Fraser Olender and deckhand Kyle Stillie.

It's Jess' first season on Below Deck, and the South Africa native is serving as a deckhand.

While it's unclear just how much yachting experience Jess has, based on her social media activity, she spent the majority of 2023 working on a yacht. She's also into extreme sports like surfing, skating, and sailing. Let's take a closer look at Jess' life before we officially meet her on Below Deck season 12.

Jess' Job

Jess Is A Deckhand/Bosun

Jess, 25, will be performing as a deckhand during her season on Below Deck, but according to her Instagram bio, Jess is now a bosun. Either Jess took a lesser position on Below Deck, or she's advanced to bosun since her season was filmed. Jess is active on social media, and has documented aspects of her career online. She even has a highlight reel on Instagram where she shared snapshots of her life working on a boat in the south of in 2023.

As a deckhand, Jess has a physically demanding job. She's responsible for helping maintain the exterior of the ship, and that includes helping with anchor drops, guiding the ship to dock, and more. Jess needs to be on top of her game and focused from beginning to end. Slacking off while working as a deckhand can have catastrophic consequences, such as when Emma Crouch, a deckhand from Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 5, fell asleep while she was supposed to be doing anchor watch, which requires the crew to stay up all night.

Jess' Instagram

Jess' Handle Is @jesstheron_

Jess is active on social media, and she's been promoting her appearance on Below Deck on her Instagram . Jess has 2,791 followers on Instagram, but on TikTok, she has 15K. Several of Jess' TikToks have gone viral, including one where she joked about visiting her grandmother in her small conservative town and getting introduced to all the neighborhood boys because her grandma isn't aware Jess is a "full on lesbian." The video has 30K views.

On TikTok, Jess participates in fun social media trends. On Instagram, she's more about the aesthetic. Jess' Instagram reflects her love of travel, as she's shared photos from Arizona, Miami, South Africa, Italy, and more. In Jess' Instagram bio, she has a link to donate to the Cancer Association of South Africa, which raises money for people impacted by cancer.

Jess' Relationship History

Jess Is In A Relationship

Jess appears to be in a relationship with an American woman named Kate Corder. Kate shared a photo of her and Jess recently looking loved up, and they appear to have been in a relationship, or at least known each other, for a little less than a year. By the looks of Jess' Instagram comments, she's also been friendly with fellow Below Deck season 12 yachtie Rainbeau de Roos, as Rainbeau had been commenting on Jess' photos since early 2024.

In her official Bravo bio, Jess teased the season, saying that it was "drama, drama, drama!" And by the looks of the show's sneak peek released by Bravo last month, there will be lots of excitement, including a canceled charter, a call to maritime police, and demanding charter guests. The crew seem like they work hard and play hard, evidenced by all the make-outs in the hot tub in the trailer. Seems like it will be a wild season on the St. David.

Below Deck season 12 premieres June 2 at 9 p.m. EDT on Bravo.

Sources: Jess/Instagram, Jess/TikTok, Kate/Instagram, Bravo, Bravo/YouTube