spotlight on member darlene van der zon

Fiery Ambitions

You probably know her if you’ve checked books out at recent club meetings: Darlene is the tall, energetic gal with the contagious laugh who’s in charge of our library. When she’s not toting around boxes of books she tends to Annalies, 5, and fraternal twins Jared and Jordan, 15 months, at home in Milpitas. Her mom duty hours are long: husband Richard Fronko commutes to Berkeley each day to manage research data for pharmaceutical companies.

With their tenth wedding anniversary coming up Darlene is “too tired” to organize a romantic getaway, but she enjoys reflecting on the circumstances of their union, which was apparently a miracle: at their first meeting, at a business conference, Darlene claims she had “zippo interest” in Richard, who has a Ph.D. in chemistry and struck Darlene as “very nerdy.” But a couple of meetings later love triumphed anyway, and eventually the two married in Richard’s hometown of Madison, Wisconsin, and then settled in the Bay Area, where Darlene has lived since she was a tyke.

One of four daughters born to Dutch immigrants in Ontario, Canada, Darlene relocated with her family to San Jose when she was four because, as her mom said, it “was something to do.” Dad was a butcher, so he could, Darlene points out, “cut meat anywhere.” And here the family remained, with Darlene even earning her bachelor’s degree in business administration from San Jose State. Before the kids came along Darlene put her degree to work as sales support manager for Varian on the Peninsula.

When Annalies was born Darlene lucked into a business analyst position for Quantum in Milpitas, which allowed her to work some of her hours at home. But even that was a struggle, as caring for her daughter posed special challenges. Born with a rare condition called PHPV, in which the retina of the eye is detached, at seven months Annalies underwent unsuccessful surgery to repair her blind right eye; eventually a prosthesis, or artificial eye, was inserted instead. Her daughter’s medical needs understandably demanded much of Darlene’s time and attention, and eventually she quit work altogether – a fortuitous decision, considering the challenges that still lay ahead.

In 2001, when she found out she was having twins, Darlene found herself thinking, “Okay, God, what’s the plan here? ’Cause this isn’t funny!” Though she now admits, “Two years later I’m laughing, a little.” Jared and Jordan have brought lots of joy, but also worry: the boys have plagiocephaly, a condition in which the head becomes misshapen, usually from cramped uterine conditions, and for the past seven months they’ve each worn a helmet to correct the problem. Darlene describes the little guys as “real troopers” about wearing their helmets full-time, though now that they have to wear them only at night she’s noticing how much more “jovial” they are.

After years of managing the home front Darlene “would love to go back to work,” which she plans to do in about a year. Making money is her primary goal, she says, but she’d like to use more “creative, artistic skills” from now on. That means forgoing the business positions and perhaps pursuing photography, a hobby since high school and a field in which Darlene would love to explore digital possibilities. She’d also like to find time for one of her passions: firewalking, in which, she says, “letting go of anxieties and fears” enables a person to walk across hot coals without feeling the heat or getting burned. For Darlene, this practice is all about the pursuit of “spiritual enlightenment,” and she enjoys it so much that years ago she even became a certified instructor.

But for now there are the kids, and some volunteer work, which gets Darlene out of the house and keeps her resume up to date. She recently served as co-director of the vacation Bible school at her church, St. Joseph in Fremont, a position she thought would “expand my skills and creativity.” It did, but it also took three months of preparation five to six hours a day, causing Darlene “stress, stress, stress.” Now that that’s over, she needs a little R & R. Hot coals, anyone? —Lisa Crystal

 

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