Since she can remember, JéAnna Abbott has been a runner—well, more of a marathoner.

Abbott (J.D. ’88, M.H.M. ’91, L.L.M. ’99) says she has no idea how many miles she’s run over the decades. “I just love to run, like Forrest (Gump),” she says. Her six pairs of running shoes are in major rotation. “Running is very spiritual…it gives me an opportunity to think and get clarity.”

The native Houstonian’s passion for running began as a sprinter in college, and her love for it, has only increased. Around her neck she proudly wears an M-dot pendant symbolic of her participation in an Ironman. Described as the “king of all triathlons,” the Ironman is a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike, and a 26.2-mile run. Abbott competed in two triathlons just to prepare. Last fall in the Florida Ironman, she placed 13th in her age group, and was the first female finisher from Houston. Her finishing time was 11 hours and 49 minutes out of 16 hours.

Before the year’s end, Abbott plans to compete in three more Ironman competitions. And, perhaps a twelve-hour stock car race in Australia and a twenty-four-hour adventure race that includes running, mountain biking, kayaking, rock climbing/ropes, and navigating.

Her soundtrack when running? “It’s a little bit of everything from matchboxtwenty to Abba to Jerry Jeff Walker to Aerosmith to a bit of Christina Aguilera.”

Her dream run? Besides Houston’s very own Memorial Park…Jeonju in South Korea.

Abbott, Spec’s Charitable Foundation Professor in Social Responsibility at the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management, teaches hospitality business law and ethics, negotiations, convention planning, and event management at the graduate and undergraduate levels.

And, if that isn’t enough, she’s also an adjunct professor at the UH Law Center.

It all began with a quiet trip with his wife to Junction, Texas, where he purchased a clock that didn’t work.

In John Hardy’s cozy home, there is a room devoted to the restoration of clocks that range from 150 to 170 years old. Every room of his house, with the exception of the master bedroom, has clocks. He’s now up to twenty-six timepieces. What does his wife think of his hobby? “I don’t think we could print it,” he says jokingly. “She grits her teeth and goes along with it.”

For more than four years, he hit the books—taking several courses and reading many books to learn the craft. “I enjoy working on the mechanisms,” he says. “It’s fascinating that something so old is capable of still working and keeping good time.” Hardy’s specialty is American-made clocks with woodwork movements.

Hardy, who teaches abstract algebra and number theory, has been associate dean in the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics for more than seventeen years. For the past thirteen years, he has served on the university’s Scholarship Committee, and presently serves as chair. What keeps him going? “I love the recruiting aspect of my job,” he adds. “I really enjoy seeing students succeed.”

The native Mississippian came to UH in 1969. “Coming to Houston was a great opportunity,” he says. “I wanted to see a different part of the world, and I’ve never looked back.”

When Hurricane Katrina submerged New Orleans, Hardy extended a helping hand through his expertise. It took more than eight months for him to restore eight clocks from the 1800s that had been under 12 to 18 inches of water for more than a week. “They (the clocks) were literally ready for the dumpster, but you can’t just throw a 170-year-old clock away.”

The passion for bringing things back to their original glory has a history for Hardy. In the 1970s, he restored Corvettes.

But that’s another story.