Introduction

Rick Crandall (Host): All right. We’re going to continue with our awards presentations right now, beginning with the Invisible No More Perseverance Award. The 2015 recipient is Diane Van Deren.

Diane has been chosen based upon her perseverance and strength, overcoming decades of living with epilepsy, and now the trauma of it. She’s a pretty tough lady. Diane Van Deren on her way up here!

Diane Van Deren’s Acceptance Speech

I’m truly honored to be a part of this award tonight. Looking at each and every one of you, I realize how blessed each of us really and truly are. A recent ankle surgery has put me behind a couple of weeks, but as my husband can attest, he hasn’t seen me stand still in one spot for the 34 years of our marriage!

My journey began as a very young child. I was immensely athletic—anything with a ball, a bat, or movement where I could compete against the girls or the boys, that’s what I wanted to do. As I got older, I picked up tennis. After winning state championships and playing on the national tour, my dream was to become a professional tennis player. I left high school three months early, finished my classes, got my degree, and there I was with six rackets under my arm and a sponsorship from Wilson Sporting Goods. I was living my dream, playing professional tennis across Europe, visiting a new country every week.

Facing the Diagnosis and Overcoming Epilepsy

Eventually, I was ready to take a break, regroup, and start a family. My husband, Scott, and I got married and had three beautiful children. But in the midst of raising three small kids—aged one, three, and five—I was diagnosed with epilepsy.

For ten years, I tried every medication available, but nothing worked. I lived with a constant fear of the unknown, never knowing when the next seizure would strike. Having played professional tennis, I had always felt invincible. When the seizures escalated in frequency, I could have succumbed to despair. But when I came out of a seizure and saw my children looking over me, I never asked, “Why me?” I was never angry. I said, “Why not me?” I knew God always had a plan.

After a decade of debilitating seizures, I opted for brain surgery. Following extensive testing, doctors identified damaged tissue in my right temporal lobe from years of seizures. They removed a section about the size of a golf ball. The good news is that I have been completely seizure-free and off medication for years.

Finding Freedom Through Ultra-Endurance Running

Removing part of your brain comes with consequences—I struggle with memory, overstimulation, sense of direction, and daily household tasks. But I am seizure-free and living an incredible life. As my kids grew older, I discovered a profound love for running.

Initially, I ran to escape the fear of impending seizures. The mountains became my safe haven because I never had a seizure while running. People often ask how I got into crazy 50- and 100-mile ultra-marathons; it literally began from running away from fear. I entered my first 50-mile race and won. Then I entered a 100-mile race and won that too.

Impact and Purpose as a Professional Athlete

Eventually, I was picked up as a professional athlete by The North Face, competing in extreme endurance races worldwide. Ultra-endurance racing means starting at 3:00 or 4:00 AM with headlamps on, navigating trails, rivers, torrential rain, and climbing mountains continuously for 28 to 45 hours straight in the middle of nowhere.

For years, when filling out required medical clearance forms before races, I never disclosed my history of brain surgery or seizures. I feared race directors wouldn’t let me onto the course. I wanted to prove myself solely as an elite athlete. It wasn’t until I was named Female Athlete of the Year in front of the top athletes in the world that my full story finally came out.

I have now been a professional endurance athlete for 13 years. While podium finishes are gratifying, my true incentive isn’t just winning—it’s that running provides me with a platform to share my journey and inspire others. Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is the present—and that’s why we call it the gift.