AGE IS JUST A NUMBER

This Runner And Rancher Defy The Odds At 102 And 94

Interviews by ELISSA CHUDWIN and JAIME DUNAWAY Photography courtesy of HEIDI WAGNER

It’s hard not to be impressed with C.C. Young residents Anita Hullum and Orville Rogers. At 94 and 102, Hullum and Rogers are just as active as seniors as they were in their youth. Their bravado impressed Heidi Wagner, who photographed them for Dallas’ LeadingAge Meeting and Expo in 2013.

As a result, she decided to include their photographs in The Passions Project, a series depicting seniors pursuing what they love. Wagner hopes the project contradicts stereotypes about growing old. “We fear aging, and we want to deny aging,” she says. “When you focus on your own aging, you stop living your life. When you focus on your passion, then you focus on your living.”

Here’s what Hullum and Rogers say about the project, their hobbies and their lives.

Orville Rogers

Orville Rogers’ name may be familiar. He’s been featured on ESPN and Sports Illustrated. He also co-authored the book “The Running Man: Flying High for the Glory of God.” The 102-yearold former pilot and World War II veteran started his running career at age 50 after reading Kenneth Cooper’s book “Aerobics.” Since then, he’s set numerous records, including 18 world records.

What were your favorite races?

I was a member of the Cross Country Club of Dallas, now called the Dallas Running Club. Tal Morrison, the founder, recruited me about the first or second year of the running club’s history. They had a meet every first Saturday of the month. The distances always varied anywhere from a mile to a 15K. Whatever they were running, I ran. But I outgrew them. I got acquainted with USA Track & Field, which maintains U.S. records and is a repository for the applications for world records. I thought maybe I could set some records. This is 11 years ago now. I was approaching 90. I got a trainer at Landry. He worked with me about three or four months. I entered two or three races March 3, 2008. My wife was going with me to Boston for the meet. We had hotel and airlines placed. She died March 8, two or three weeks before. I miss her greatly. But I talked to my kids, who encouraged me to run. So I did. I broke the 800-meter run by about a minute. I slaughtered the mile record. I think it was 11 something. I did it in 9:57. That’s still a world record for 90-year-olds.

What distance is your favorite in competition?

It depends on whether it’s indoors or outdoors. May I explain?

Outdoor tracks are 400 meters. Indoor tracks are 200 meters. So my favorite race is one loop. All you have to do is start out fast, turn left and hurry home.

What was your training schedule like?

I don’t think I’ll be running anymore. I have no energy, and I have no endurance. That’s not good for a runner. Back to my heyday, I ran five marathons. Four of them were White Rocks, and one was in Tulsa. My last was my best by far because I really trained for it. I think I was almost 75. I was running 80 miles per week for two months or so. Then I tapered down at the end, of course. My best time of my career was 3:49:50.

Do you miss running?

I do, like I miss flying. I never did enjoy much what they call the runner’s high. Two or three times I felt exhilarated for a few moments there. But it didn’t last very long. I always enjoyed running, which is maybe one reason I did so well. I ran 43,000 miles in the last 50 years.

How did you and your wife meet?

At Oklahoma University. We were both Baptist, and the church had a very active student program at OU. It’s called the Baptist Student Union. She was dating another boy at the time, and I had a difficult time winning her over. It took a couple years, but it was worth it.

How did you win her over? Persistence. By the way, I think that’s overlooked in the list of things that contribute to long-term health and well-being.

Outside of running, what are your hobbies?

I’m active in the church. I’m still active in the stock market.

What did you like to do as a child?

I would meet three or four friends at the local swimming pool, and we would play tag for hours, running and swimming. I think that’s where I got my endurance.

What’s your favorite food? Fried okra. It’s not the healthiest food in the world … I got them to put it on the menu here. I kept asking for it, and they weren’t listening to me. So I started asking all my tablemates, “Would you like fried okra on the menu?” They’d say yes, so I’d say, “Tell the waitress.”

Did you enjoy running marathons?

What do you call a guy that likes torture? A masochist? It’s kind of torturous. The halfway point of a marathon is the 20-mile mark. The last 6 miles are tough, but you tough it out. I noticed a lot of runners falter at the finish line. They see the finish line and say, “I’ve got it made,” and slow down. I power through the tape just as hard as I can do it. And I’m that way about life. I want to finish strong.

Anita Hullum

Don’t let her sweet demeanor fool you. Anita Hullum is tough. Growing up on a ranch in East Texas, she was chosen over five siblings to lead the family cattle business. She grew up with cowboys, who taught her to be a successful businesswoman long before female owners were widely accepted. From driving tractor-trailers to forming her own oil company, she seems to have done it all.

What was it like having your picture taken for The Passions Project?

I’ve never been happy about my pictures. I always thought everyone else looked good. I’d either have my eyes closed or my mouth open or stand like a gunslinger about to shoot you. Heidi put me out on the patio with my pots and my plants, and it was fun. When I got her picture, I was just so pleased because she got me. My eyes were open, and my mouth was shut. That picture changed my focus from business and work to play. Who would think that someone taking your picture would change your life?

Tell me about your childhood.

I grew up 10 miles south of Wills Point. We didn’t have roads back then, so when the creeks were high, we couldn’t get out. Mother made her own soap, and we had a 12-acre garden. We had to get the wood and put it in the fireplace to heat the house and cook. It was a hard life. When I was very young, my father raised cotton. When it got so cheap that we couldn’t sell it, we went into the ranching business. Daddy liked them wild. We had East Texas brimmers and hogs. We had to be fast to keep up with them. Then I bought some land, and my father and I did ranching in partnership.

Why do you think your father chose you as his protégé?

There were six children, and I was the middle girl … and the runt. But, somehow, daddy picked me to head the family business. He didn’t pick the boys. He groomed me and taught me. I went with him everywhere. I don’t know why he picked me, but I think I was the most like him. I was a tough trader. If I didn’t get the best deal, I didn’t take it.

Is there a memory from your days on the ranch that stands out to you?

Dad and I had this ranch out in Greenville. In the back corner, there was a raging creek. We had to swim the creek to get the cattle out. I was riding up there getting the cattle, and I hit a bumblebee nest. They went down my shirt, and I was with all men. I couldn’t take my shirt off, but I was jumping and rolling.

What other business did you do as an adult?

I went to college, and when I graduated, I went to work for Neiman Marcus and trained to be a buyer. I worked there for a couple years, and then I got married, and we had an installation business. I had a truck driver’s license, I formed my own oil company and did employee assistance work. But I never got away from ranching. I always had my cattle. It was very important in my life. It was a fun, exciting, wonderful life.

What inspired you to do employee assistance?

My husband was an alcoholic, and when I got my divorce, I became an alcoholic. I didn’t want to think or feel. I thought it was all my fault. I went to Hazelden for treatment, and when I finally got back, I went to SMU for a master’s in counseling, where I learned about employee assistance. When I let go and let God, I flipped. What I do for others is my game now. If I hadn’t been through what I went through, I never would have understood it.

Was it hard being a businesswoman back then?

Oh, it was impossible. Every business I’ve been involved in, I had to have a man front me. Ranching was nothing but cowboys. Tough bunch. I didn’t particularly mind though. I kind of got a kick out of it. They didn’t have a clue.

What do you like to do now?

I’ve always been a mover and a shaker, and it’s hard to stop. I go to the workshops here, and I love potting because I like to grow things. I’ve made a pot with a tree on one side and flowers on the other. It’s gotten my mind off business and onto more fun things. It’s therapy.

By GEORGE MASON