Mark Lorenzoni and Cynthia Lorenzoni

00:02 My name is Mark. Lorenzana. I'm 65 years. Old. Today, is Wednesday, June 16th, 2021 and we are in Charlottesville, Virginia. And I'm going to be chatting today. With my wife of almost forty-one years, Cynthia.

00:21 And my name is Cynthia. Lauren Sony. I will be 63 next Wednesday on June 23rd. Today's date is Wednesday, August 16th, 2021 live in Charlottesville, Virginia, and my husband is my conversation partner.

00:43 Cynthia. I thought it's for us in many ways. This past year has been one of the most remarkable. It's hard to describe a but one of the most remarkable of our, my 40-some years together. And it's had a profound effect on us in many ways. But it's, it's tested. So many things are our marriage, our business, our family relationships, but it's had in a non weird way. It's been one of the most exciting years and it's like I just think that none of that would have been possible with some really negative things. Hadn't happened in our Light 40 some-odd years ago that let us to one another and I think about how

01:32 How fortunate we are to have the thousands of people that we interact with throughout the year this past year, especially so immersed, in none of that would have been possible. If we had faced crises is in our lives, that would dip on us together and I've been thinking a lot about it as we come out at the other end of this business, with outside all year. You were back inside again for all dachshund hated on, the numbers are coming down and it's a time for reflection and I'm reflecting back on when we met and what lettuce to meeting each other which were dark scenarios that led us to, you know, the classic come no doors, closing windows opening without the hardship that we each day's our password and never cross.

02:25 And we would have never met one another and as insignificant as they may seem. Now at the time, they were huge.

02:35 You know, I was running at Michigan State and I have is a varsity athlete and it was, It was kind of my whole life, all my friends and you know, we spent so much time traveling and training didn't have a lot of time for anything else outside of class in my studies and I got injured and I couldn't run and it was just devastating to some of that was used to spending four hours a day, doing a sport that I loved and I couldn't do it. And now only couldn't I do it it hurt to walk and getting around with such a hardship. But according to my parents were so kind and considerate and they always were great listeners. And they were very sympathetic. But you, no choice after while my mother said, you know, it's this is the worst thing that ever happens to you. You can consider yourself lucky. Cuz yes, you're sad and it's

03:35 Hard. But it's just a really. It's like when you look back on this, it's not going to be a big deal. However, true that injury.

03:47 Amirite. What came out of it was me going to work selling running shoes part-time in the afternoons. When I normally would have been at practice and I was able to borrow really close relationship to the people that I was working with, and just the whole Act of helping other people with a sport that I love so much. And it was so important to me, was just so meaningful and for you because you have been Captain's if you did, you would leader your team, but it's so even in that leadership role, you're running has really been focused on you and suddenly there you were in a job after I mean, let's face it, you've described that was a dark time. You were depressed. You think about how young you were there and I think about our employees. Now when they come to us with crisis and we have to stay with me, do the cynical thing to say. It's no big deal, but we don't say that to me.

04:46 He said it's all going to come out to wash. It's going to be good. You can watch this is a good thing. This happened. You'd think they'd get denied going into the story of their dreams. I'm thinking you don't know how good this is going to be for you. But at 19 years old, you're not listening to that, and that's how old you were. You were wondering, maybe 19 or 20, go get this job, which I loved. And really, honestly blood Us opening hour of Running Shop in 1980 to 1970 and I didn't 7777. So, anyway, but I change my major and if I had to change my major would have never met you and with you getting hurt and you're out.

05:46 And how they want to spend my, my career years of the work that was something meaningful to me. And being a CPA was not really what I was put up to do and I was good at it. And yeah, I think that's really it. If I hadn't gotten injured, I would I continue to NAP course but I just totally got to totally derailed but I did have a lot of time, a lot more time to think about, who I was and what I wanted who are the guests Cynthia. That 45 years later, 48 years later, whatever that we would have 30 to 35 college, kids, working for a set. Your what you went through it. Would you can continue to relate because despite the era of technology and all the modernization & Music, Exchange and television shows. Young people are still essentially wired the same way we work and you're able that experience is able to get that advice.

06:46 And if you know right about the same time, you are on your trajectory and you ran into a wall that you felt like that wall was the end for you in a lot of weight because there was no what the money was your life. I was just I was just not certain my password was not as clear as it had been bored and very quick in it and a scholarship but Big Ten athlete.

07:21 As you know, I mean, that from my freshman year, in high school for the everything is focused on being a veterinarian. I worked at that animal hospital at the high school. I had all the James Herriot books. I was consumed with being a country veterinarian. I got into Michigan state that that's I work for in high school said you were going to be a great veterinarian. We can't wait to congratulate you, when you get your degree. I got a question pre-vet program, and swear. I started my mom and dad were the real. It was, I had no plan B, that was my primary focus. So I wasn't an athlete. But I was a dedicated person to my major was not everybody is depression. I was nose to the ground from the second. I hit Michigan State and

08:10 It became apparent to me after two semesters that this was going to be a real reach because it was academically so difficult. And so few students that were from out-of-state. I was your New Jersey as you know, like you were from, Connecticut.

08:27 It was going to be really hard. They figure. I applied to the actual Death School. They accepted a hundred and four kids and a hundred of them were in State, Michigan residents. I need a lot of people that were pretty bad and people talked about how hard it was to get into vet school. If they didn't have one in the state that you were raised and 19 best schools in North America. The time I just wasn't cut out and I can remember calling my mother cuz God knows my father in. The number one is classically high IQ off the charts on the oldest body. Could not understand why I couldn't get better grades. I call my mom in tears cuz I never tried to my mother hardly ever and see Mom, I didn't get in.

09:17 A guy cutting a, whether there's nothing, there's no exit strategy. There's no other plan in place. I'm here. I am two years into college cuz it's to your programming and it's like your mother. My mother's words were a little more spiritual cuz she was a big churchgoer, but she goes God has a different plan for you. I said no Mom and that this is my only plan. I'm going to be a great Veterinary and she goes, I thought you be at 2 but there's obviously something else out there and sure enough. I transferred into the same major you did and that story kept on going, as you know, because

09:56 I ended up coming to Virginia and I got my degree in in, in in parks and rec and a year after I was working down here in Charlottesville. I got a letter that chased me down. Where do my parents would moved? It was forwarded. My dad, got it to me. That said, your three credits shy of your degree and sure enough. It was at that field trip cuz, you know, I mean, field trip field trip. I had had weighed by my advisor. I called you by 7:20. See you waved at me and I was going to be in already, and I was in our a training before school started when the trip was supposed to, cuz I remember way than that, so.

10:42 And I wasn't another dark day. I'm so scared to tell my boss. That I was a sham. I didn't have a degree. I was three credits shy and it led me back up to Michigan State for that a trip. I seen failure all over. I was going back to school, 8 days to a bunch to get on the bus. With a bunch of rising seniors, would seem only been at school a year. I was so removed from the college. Need I got on that bus and I sat in the front, the second of the front seat right behind it. The teacher in the TA I said, I'm going to sit up here. I'm not going to need a single person. I'm going to read. I'll get the doggone class done and move on with my life, the back to Virginia.

11:31 But I had to go because I want to graduate and times you were back running and I think something is going to be bad. It ends up being the best thing that ever happened to you. Constantly. Mine are dark times are for kids. Each Amendment Bill Jews had challenges, but our employees over and over again are college and high school, kids coming to work. Not functioning. Well, pulling them in the back room and the office in. What's wrong with you today? You're not yourself and breaking down in tears and their stories are almost always, we know you're going to get through this but

12:17 Getting them that bit of advice to say the dark leads to good show today. I'll never forget seeing you that first day on the trip that we stopped at for the night up in northern Michigan. And I went out for a run and I was coming back and you were running and you asked me how far the road went.

12:38 Idea, how far this road goes.

12:41 I am a recreational Runner, went out a mile and a half of that amount yet, and of course, I kind of recognized you. As she seems familiar cuz you were a big star, your bit of a rock star on campus. And then the next day, you came up to me at Sleeping Bear Dunes.

13:01 We started talking all that range. It was stalking. You were hitting on me or something. It was really a husband.

13:13 But when you came out and sat down next to me on the bus there, third day, maybe and we were crossing the Mackinac Bridge, and then we have even stopped talking, the whole rest of the trip going to stop lying to me. It's been the inspirational story of my life. Because every time I do go into a darker place. When we faced challenges, I'm reminded of in our young like because again, somebody might hear the story and state. Come on. I've faced worse things in my life sicknesses and I'm tragedies, but it nineteen or twenty years old when something's denied your immature and you think this is the end, you know, what's, what else is left in? You realize there is almost always another plan out there.

14:10 And to think we open the business just a few years ago. We got married in 80 remarried.

14:16 Idea, 51 weeks a year after we met and talked about, even just the running. Shut was born out of passion. We both love the sport. There was a need, there was nothing in the community.

14:37 And we felt like this would be a good partnership with our town and think about the countless relationships. We have the thousands of people that we met in the fundraiser has been involved with, in the Borg, we sat on it.

14:52 Is everywhere we go. Can we do we feel a part of the town in a perfectly wonderful place to raise children? You're right. I think from me that part that I love still about going to work and what's supposed to be when I was young is just helping other people and share having them share their stories with me and maybe sharing my story with them and that never gets old. It just everyday this interesting and wonderful, and it is. You think about today, think about today. I whispered to that woman. I said, she said you've been so helpful and you're helping that young man, that young man in wheelchair down the rest of his life. Basically, and we're trying to help them with shoe struggling in that van because he couldn't get out of the van.

15:52 The mother kept saying. Thank you, too, for helping so much and I said, this is literally why we come to work every day's wanted to help people in. It's very Grand on the service, but just trying to have some small impact on their life, but I'll go back Cynthia. It's it's been a day, but it's been the Run of my life, you know, having failed to get into vet school, ended up being the greatest thing to ever happen to me. And you, I think you

16:25 Would agree that injury led to so many wonderful things ever known. I'm going to be, I'm going to be worse. I got data. Paul me, the idea of taking money from people asking them for dollars, taking the credit card of the cash. I just left. There's no way I would ever thought about doing that. And yet here, it's been our wife for 40 years, but it never seems like taking money partnership.

17:00 But helping you them, I think one of the things that motivates both of us so much is just helping people be healthier. Like we're really obsessed with being as healthy as possible as well as we age now being active eating. Well taken either one of those things that was pointed out to me, and you might remember this, but people don't like it when they're not in control of their life, right? Like we want to feel like we are in control of what where do everyday and how we live our lives. And we really are. So it's just like, either, you're lucky and things go. Well, or sometimes you're unlucky and things go poorly and you have to deal with both. But

17:45 I lost my train of thought control and you have to like during the pandemic. The thing that for me, that got me through was getting up every day and getting outside and just feeling like for maybe an hour, I had control over, what I was going to do that day or how my life is going to go, that day has been going to walk or run or go for a hike or yeah, that's basically what we did every day. And I don't I had to miss any days just cuz like I could greet the sunrise and it was we had we have such beautiful weather in Virginia and it's just it's been a pleasure to feel like, okay, I can't control what's happening around us because this world, we're living in is crazy right now, but I can control that and I just think it is a horror that humans do like to feel like we have some control. At least it was certainly didn't this year with a pandemic. So we feel like we're always pivoting everyday was in an hour.

18:45 Things are changing quickly. Would have ever thought. Two years ago, after 38 years of business that we would spend at 15 months of our light outside serving our customers that I feel like I've been training all my life for this year because at our age to be working outside all day one, which wasn't it terrible hardship, but summer of winter, rain, and Cynthia. I must say it's been emotional to see, don't like we had loyal customers. I don't like, they cared about us and that they cared about what we did and what we do for the community, but this year, it felt like It's a Wonderful Life. It really, it was. So, magnify with people coming out of the woodwork, people ordering shoes mall to touching people sitting outside 25 degree weather.

19:45 Thanks for being here. Did you ever think you'd be sitting outside trying on shoes? And I'm over and over again. So anyway, about images about life in general and like how life is not easy, oftentimes life is really hard and humans. We are required to handle that. Like we don't maybe want to handle it but we certainly can't. And I think your parents, both your mom and dad and my parents were really really hard workers, you know, they would never afraid of hard work and I guess like being an athlete. My whole life and and being a runner, you know, the competitive runner for 12 years taught me like to be successful. You have to be willing to work hard and so

20:33 With the pandemic and us the challenges, we face of their business in with our children who pretty much run the store. Now, it wasn't that bad compared to a lot of Great Lakes. You can take how can you get together? Like, how could you stand it in the winter being outside as well? I have a lot of clothes. And what do we talk about compared to what is as far as compared to the world war people getting bombed in London? This isn't really hard like that has refugee camps all over there and we were just really careful and we're blessed with good health. And, you know, we were able to do it, but I'd I never liked it was not easy, but it wasn't the worst thing in the world and we were so lucky because our business was so busy. So but like I do feel like it in a lot of ways. I had been training my whole life to get through a year so they could stay the week, you know, 8 hours a day.

21:31 7 like, yeah, and you know, we weren't maybe looking for girls in our sixties. But hey, ya, you think our background shapes? Our attitude wasn't just your parents, but that experience. It lied to us meeting each other. It wouldn't give us a deeper appreciation of crisis of Darkness of tough times. That we do have you, how many times you have me, say to a young staff crisis to find your character? Anybody can live to easy times but and you'll make it through tough times. I didn't think I could, but we haven't since I got to say that I really

22:14 Forever grateful. If you coming up sit next to me and I'm grateful for not having gotten into what I thought was my dream scenario. That's cool. Well, I think I was, I spoke to a high school kids two days ago about leadership and I was talking about like the first thing about being a leader is really being a risk-taker. So I guess I had been in me from early on and what is it going to do? Well, anyway, I do love you, Cynthia.

22:59 I love you forever, but I am forever tied into that at does those routes that let us do each other back? 1979. Thanks. Thank you.

23:15 All right.