MOBILE, Ala. (AP) – Mixed martial artist Cat Zingano is known for her toughness as a fighter. But she has a soft side as well that comes from being a survivor, not just in the ring but in her personal life. When Cat was in college, her mother was diagnosed with and eventually died of brain cancer. Later, Cat’s husband, who managed her career, took his own life.
Knowing too well how devastating it is to lose someone you love dearly, and how important it is to move forward after such a loss, Cat gives back by awarding a $10,000 scholarship to a student who has experienced the death of a loved one.
This year’s winner of the $10,000 Cat Zingano Overcoming Loss Scholarship is Destiny Wallace, a Birmingham native, graduate of Ramsay IB High School and a current student at Auburn University at Montgomery. As soon as Destiny found the scholarship information online at bold.org, she knew it was the perfect opportunity to share the story of her mother’s death and inspire others to persevere as she has.
To be considered for the scholarship, students had to submit an essay describing how the loss of a close family member or loved one caused them to focus on what matters most in life and what they want to “fight” to achieve.
Though Destiny had a difficult childhood filled with domestic abuse – her father was arrested and jailed for hurting her mother – she says she came from an “amazing, loving family with many great leaders,” including lawyers and judges. She believes she has some of those qualities inside that have led her to this point in life.