They aren’t students, and they’re not athletes by any formal definition. They’re not known at UNC in an official capacity, though they embody what it means to be a local celebrity. The odds are good that any given UNC student has seen them at some point.
They are an easily recognizable pair of runners, often on campus, always together, literally supporting each other as they go.
Emily and Dennis, who asked that their last name not be disclosed, go running together nearly every day. They’ve lived in Chapel Hill almost consistently since they graduated from UNC in 1978 and 1977, respectively.
The two met in 1977 through a mutual friend. Dennis, who had just graduated with a degree in French education, volunteered to be a reader for Emily, who is blind. Emily was a senior studying public health nutrition who had recently taken up jogging through her physical education elective.
Soon, she was convincing Dennis to join her.
“I got him to go out running, which was not his thing,” she said. “And we just started gradually. We’d go on the track — most of the time at the end of the day, no big deal. I was not very popular when I got him to go in the morning sometimes.”
The two have now been married for almost 32 years. Dennis said he loves Emily’s fearlessness. She said she appreciates his support and encouragement. And running remains an important part of both of their lives.
They jog on a rotation of three different routes, which range from 4.5 to 8 miles in length.
“This is just part of our normal routine,” Dennis said. “I guess people that have been around here a long time get used to seeing us, but it’s so normal to us we don’t think anything about it.”