On the streets of Boston, Massachusetts, Miranda Hotham lets the rhythm of her footsteps clear her mind and steady her heart. This January, those strides carried her much farther, 13.1 miles through the sun-soaked streets of Miami, as she honored her mother, Dee Hotham, who passed away from pancreatic cancer two years ago.
The Miami sun shone down on more than just the half marathon course; it illuminated a daughter’s love, determination, and memory. Dee’s warmth, laughter, and relentless kindness inspired Miranda to lace up her shoes with Project Purple, not just to run, but to carry her mother’s spirit with every step.
Running Roots and Family Foundations
Miranda’s love of running began in the small town of Winslow, Maine, where she grew up surrounded by wide-open spaces and crisp New England air. At just 14, she decided she wanted to run an organized race, signing up for the Maine Half Marathon on a whim. Crossing that finish line, she discovered the thrill of pushing herself physically and mentally, and “from there I really fell in love with the sport,” she recalls.
Running soon became a family affair. While Miranda’s mother, Dee, didn’t train like a traditional runner, often choosing the elliptical or stationary bike at the gym, she was always deeply supportive of her daughter’s running. Whether it was driving Miranda to her running spots, walking laps around the track while she trained, or simply cheering her on, Dee was always there. “We were always being active together, and she’s always been really supportive of me getting out and being active as well,” Miranda reflects.
That support eventually extended to races they did together, creating lasting memories for both mother and daughter. Miranda and her mom participated in many events as a duo, often running for various causes. And while they often ran different distances, sharing these race days became a meaningful tradition. Together, they celebrated their connection, their dedication, and their shared commitment to causes bigger than themselves.
High school saw Miranda expanding her athletic pursuits. She switched from field hockey to cross country, joining indoor and outdoor track teams and embracing this newfound love for the sport. Yet, even as competition became a central part of her identity, running also remained personal: a way to challenge herself and find focus outside the classroom and gym.
College, however, brought a shift. After moving to Worcester in 2015 to attend Clark University, Miranda stepped away from competitive running, and slowly the activity overall. The environment was different, her schedule demanding, and she found herself exploring other hobbies while putting running on hold.
It wasn’t until her mother’s illness that fitness returned to her life. During Dee’s battle, Miranda spent time at the gym lifting and walking frequently, often taking her dog around the neighborhood to get fresh air while listening to audiobooks or podcasts. “It was a good way to clear my head,” she reflects.
It would be some time before Miranda returned to running, though, as her focus was on supporting her mother through the challenges ahead, as Dee’s journey with pancreatic cancer took center stage.
Her Light, Her Kindness: Dee Hotham Remembered
Dee Hotham was a woman defined by strength, compassion, and joy. Miranda describes her mother as someone who approached everyone with empathy, always prioritizing kindness. “She had this approach where every stranger is just a friend you haven’t met yet,” Miranda remembers. Dee’s warmth and generosity extended far beyond her immediate family; friends, neighbors, and even casual acquaintances often experienced her selfless nature.
“There were a lot of people who saw her as a mother figure. A lot of my friends would see her as a second mom,” Miranda says. “She was always willing to expand her motherly love to whoever was in her realm and whoever else needed it.” Even while facing her own pancreatic cancer battle, Dee’s maternal care extended into taking care of her mother, displaying the same selflessness and strength that defined her life.
Dee also celebrated life’s small joys. She loved singing spontaneously, leaving handwritten notes for her friends and children, and taking in the sun and water wherever she could. “If you ask anybody what they knew about her and what they loved about her, they would say she loved lying out by the lake or the beach, reading a book, and spending time with her kids,” Miranda remembers fondly.
In February 2023, Dee’s life took a sudden turn. After months of back pain and a subtle loss of appetite, she went to the hospital. Scans and consultations eventually led to a devastating diagnosis: Stage 4 pancreatic cancer that had already metastasized.
Despite the grim news, Dee remained remarkably strong. “She was one tough lady,” Miranda laughs. “She never complained about anything.” True to form, Dee even delayed telling Miranda about her diagnosis, exemplifying the way she often downplayed her own struggles to protect and reassure her loved ones.
The way she approached her diagnosis constantly reminds Miranda of the time when years earlier, she and her mom had run a race together, and Dee had been running with a hernia the entire time. “She didn’t complain until after,” Miranda recalls. “She just said she felt like she had a cramp!”
That determination and grit, evident long before her cancer diagnosis, perfectly reflect the resilience Dee carried into every challenge she faced, including her pancreatic cancer battle. But above all, Miranda’s favorite thing about her mom was the fact that she was her mom. “I’m so lucky to have had her be my mom,” she shares. “I would choose her every single time over and over again.”
A Return to Running
For Miranda, the loss of her mother was deeply transformative. The first year after Dee’s passing was all about adjusting to a world without her mother, but as she entered the second year, Miranda felt compelled to thrive and get back into the sport she once loved. She wanted to, as she describes, “really be able to take the memory of her and use that to push me to go outside and do more.”
That return began modestly, starting by running just a mile each day: a way to reclaim routine, reconnect with her body, and get back outside. But getting back into running needed more than just the act itself: it needed a purpose. “I wanted to have a goal, a reason, and a drive to actually go outside and do this every day,” Miranda says. “So that’s when I decided I wanted to start training for my second half marathon, ten years later.”
After making that decision, Miranda needed to find not just the right race but also a cause that would give her training deeper meaning. She began searching for charity organizations focused on cancer, specifically pancreatic, and soon came across Project Purple. “I just felt like I was meant to find it,” she says when describing the moment she found the organization. “I think it came on my path for a reason.”
And, while browsing Project Purple’s calendar, she came across the Miami Half Marathon and immediately felt drawn to it. “My mom loved the sunshine, she loved the ocean,” Miranda recalls, “so I felt like that would be a really good way for me to remember her and honor her, being out in the sun, down by the water.”
Now with a real event to train for, running returned as an outlet for Miranda: a way to channel her anxiety and pent-up energy. “I get home from working all day and mentally, I’m tired, but physically, I’ve been sitting at my desk all day, and it’s a really good way for me to get that out of my system and get my body moving,” she shares.
As the race took place in January, Miranda trained in the dead of winter. Running in the dark and the cold has been challenging, but also a powerful way to push herself. “You get better by doing things you don’t want to do,” she says. “I always remember my mom was so uncomfortable and she went through something really hard, so I’m capable of doing this and going through something that’s really hard as well.”
On her hardest runs, Miranda felt her mother’s presence most strongly. She believes Dee was looking down from above, quietly propelling her forward. During one especially difficult training run, when she was on the verge of giving up, Miranda looked up and saw a breathtaking sunset streaked with pinks and purples, and in that moment, she felt her mom speaking directly to her: just do it, you’re almost done, keep going.
Additionally, practicing gratitude during her runs was a constant source of motivation. “I need to be grateful that I can go out, move my body, and have the opportunity to push myself,” she explains. “Running has really helped me not only channel a lot of the negative energy I don’t want, but also to practice gratitude: for my neighborhood, where I live, and the fact that I have a body capable of going out every day and doing something really hard.”
Racing With Love That Never Left
Through grief, Miranda has learned that love doesn’t disappear: it transforms. “One thing that I did learn was that grief is learning how to love someone when they’re no longer here,” she shares. “I still have all this love for my mom, so the question is how do I share that with her, and how do I share that with the world?”
For Miranda, running has become one of the ways she continues to share that love. When people asked why she ran 13.1 miles in January, Miranda was given another chance to say her mother’s name, to share who Dee was, and to relive memories with friends and loved ones. “I think that’s a really good way to keep loving her,” she says.
While pancreatic cancer is the reason Miranda connected with Project Purple in the first place, she is making sure her mother is remembered for far more than her illness. “I feel like pancreatic cancer was such a small part of my mom’s life,” she shares. “It was only nine months where she was sick, and the whole rest of her life was so much more meaningful and so much more beautiful than that.”
Through this whole journey, Miranda has been able to share photos of her mom when she was healthy and happy, and to talk about the kindness, joy, and generosity that defined Dee long before cancer entered the picture. In doing so, she feels she has reached a place of acceptance: acknowledging the pain of loss, while also recognizing that Dee’s spirit remains present. “She is gone from this earth,” Miranda says, “but she’s still here. Her energy is still here, and we carry that with us every single day.”
That sense of continued connection has been reinforced by the support surrounding her. Seeing friends, family, and even strangers contribute to her fundraising efforts was deeply meaningful. “People commented and said, ‘Your mom was such a beautiful person,’ or ‘She was so kind,’” she says. “I’m just glad that she’s able to cross people’s minds again when they see those things.”
When race day arrived in Miami, Miranda knew it would be emotional and deeply symbolic. She hoped for the sunshine and warmth her mother would have loved, writing Dee’s name on her racing bib in her honor. She also made sure to carry Dee’s grit, determination, and no-excuses mentality by wearing a bracelet her mother once gave her that reads, ‘Whenever you feel overwhelmed, remember whose daughter you are and straighten your crown,’ a piece she wears every day as a constant reminder of who raised her and what she is capable of.
As for what’s next, Miranda doesn’t see this as the end of her running journey. If anything, it feels like the beginning. She’s already considering another half marathon closer to home in New England and knows she’ll continue to run with Project Purple in the future. “I think I have the itch for it,” she laughs.
Above all, Miranda hopes that the lasting takeaway from her running journey is remembering how her mother continues to inspire others to lead with kindness. Dee had an extraordinary ability to see the good in people and assume the best intentions, and that is the legacy Miranda planned to carry mile after mile into the Miami sunshine, and beyond.
If you’d like to run or participate in an event of your own for Project Purple, visit our events page.
