SGHW: What’s helped you muscle through all of this and keep putting one foot in front of the other?
DZ: I think there are a lot of things. Sometimes you have a gift: you just do what you’ve gotta do like “I have to wake up, and I have to do this.” The other thing is that I have a wonderful family who always supports me. I have friends who are always willing to do this or that. The combination of marathoning and cancer has really helped me because I know there’s a finish line. No matter how hard I’m working or what I’m doing, there’s always a finish line. I’ll get there. Some days I think, “No, I’m just too tired, and this is a day when I have to stay in bed, but I’ll be okay tomorrow.” SGHW: What would be your dream for this year’s 45th anniversary of the St. George Marathon?
DZ: Here’s what I do when I lie in bed at night, particularly if I start feeling depressed: I close my eyes, and I see the finish line. I think, “That’s my dream; let me see that finish line one more time.” I’m going to try to be there. SGHW: How has the athletic community supported you over the years?
DZ: A lot of the people I ran the first St. George Marathon with are no longer alive, but they were great examples for me. They taught me many, many things. Two of the people I run with now are ladies who were first-graders of mine. My world has come full circle. They’ll be running with me in October. SGHW: What about the Huntsman World Senior Games? You’ve been involved with them as a race director for a long time now.
DZ: Yes, right from the get-go. I oversee the 10K, 5K, and halfmarathon. I’ve met wonderful people through the Games from all over the world who’ve really taught me a lot of wonderful lessons. SGHW: You’ve made it through a lot of events that would take most people down. What would your message be to anyone who’s experiencing severe challenges? SGHW: One of the things that you and I unfortunately share, in addition to being involved in the athletic community, is that we’ve both dealt with breast cancer. You’re facing another challenge in your life now. Can you talk about that a bit? DZ: My breast cancer was in 2005. You know, like I do, that with every ache and pain, you think, “Oh no; it’s back.” But by the time that 2016 rolled around, I figured I was invincible again.
I was running the Boston Marathon, and I had this terrible pain in my stomach. I thought, “What in heck could that be?” I ran with my sister. She said, ‘Let’s just stop; you don’t need to do this.” We were at mile eighteen, and I was vomiting; I was really sick. She said, “This is silly, let’s stop.” I said “This might be my last chance to do Boston. I’m with my sister. We’re going to finish this.” We finished the race. I was flying out the next day, and I promised her I’d see the doctor when I got home. I did…I had a ruptured appendix.
They took that out, but they found a tumor in my appendix, which sent us into a tailspin. There was more surgery to make sure they’d gotten everything: they took out lymph-nodes and a foot and a half of my colon to make sure everything was clean. I have basically been on chemo since 2016…and the last couple of treatments have kind of worn me down. 20 www.sghealthandwellnessmagazine.com
DZ: My message would be stay positive, stay hopeful, and have a lot of gratitude. Many, many people care about you even when you don’t think they do. My running community, my family, St. George—all have all been so wonderful to me that I could never let them down. I just have a heart full of gratitude for what I have in my life. I think that’s the way you get through hard things. ******* The City of St. George is selling “Debbie Zockoll racer tanks” to raise funds for a scholarship to be awarded to a future runner. To order, visit http://haku.ly/dd040a97.
About the Author Marianne L. Hamilton is a veteran journalist and marketing writer whose work appears in regional and national publications. When not race walking, hiking, or teaching water aerobics, she is Board Chair of Art Around the Corner and the Special Events Manager for DOCUTAH. She and her husband, Doug, are also coadministrators of the St. George Wine Club and race directors for the Huntsman World Senior Games and National Senior Games. Marianne was crowned Ms. Senior Italy Universe 2019–2020 and the Senior Pageants Group’s 2020–2021 Senior Games Ambassador. She is a proud breast cancer survivor.
