January 21, 2002 Virgadamo beams with pride on Olympic run By Jennifer McNulty It was a frosty, clear morning, and Trish Virgadamo's bright blue eyes sparkled with emotion as she carried the Olympic torch along West Cliff Drive early Friday. Trish Virgadamo takes the torch on a stunning morning on West Cliff Drive in Santa Cruz, top photo, and gets an encouraging squeeze from her daughter, Elizabeth, before she begins her run, middle photo. Virgadamo poses with fellow torchbearer Faryn Schneider, 15, the granddaughter of Virgadamo's first supervisor at UCSC, Sharyn Schneider (at left), in bottom photo. Faryn's segment was the first time the Olympic torch had ever been carried in Santa Cruz County. Photos: Jennifer McNulty Virgadamo, a benefits representative at UCSC, was selected as an official Olympic torchbearer after being nominated by her daughter, Elizabeth Conerly. A cancer survivor, Virgadamo wasn't sure she would be able to run the full distance between David and Columbia streets, but she made the sprint look easy. "When I got the flame, I had tears in my eyes," Virgadamo said after the run. "It was really pretty amazing. Then it's just your adrenaline going." Outfitted from head to toe in the official white torchbearer's uniform, Virgadamo was surrounded by a convoy of Olympic vans, police motorcycles, and public-safety vehicles as she ran. Dozens of friends, family, and university colleagues turned out to cheer her on, including her daughter, Elizabeth, and husband, Tom Conerly. "We were all yelling and cheering," said employment assistant Dee Dee Riccabona. "Trish was so happy, she was glowing!" "It was so wonderful," said benefits representative Susan Mothershed, who joined coworkers in shouting 'We love you! We love you!' from the sidelines. "She was so proud to be nominated, and she was flabbergasted to be chosen. That she was well enough to do it was just wonderful. She's our girl." Virgadamo's smile never faded along the route. Beaming, she waved and acknowledged the words of encouragement that rang out. Passing Woodrow, she even made a wisecrack: "They gave me the only hill!" Though she said she was "pretty well whooped" by the end of the run, onlookers never would have guessed it. "I'm just so proud of Trish," said colleague Cecile Morris, a human resources analyst. "It's wonderful. And it's what the Olympics are all about--human endeavors that are above and beyond the norm. Trish is really a symbol of that." Virgadamo was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1994 and at one point was given only a 30 to 40 percent chance of survival. Though she beat the cancer, her lungs were scarred by the radiation treatment and she had been unable to run--until Friday. Immediately after her segment of the Olympic run, Virgadamo was whisked off to a Civic Center reception in downtown Santa Cruz, where hundreds of supporters and schoolchildren gathered to celebrate the first time the Olympic torch had passed through Santa Cruz County. Posing for pictures with strangers and signing autographs, Virgadamo cradled her Olympic torch in her arms. "While carrying the torch is probably the most amazing honor of my life, having my daughter nominate me is really the honor," said Virgadamo, giving Conerly a hug. "That's just a stunning, stunning thing." "You hoofed it, Mom," boasted Conerly. See earlier story. Return to Front Page