Heidelberg Athletics Hall of Fame
One season spent as a seventh-grade cheerleader was all it took for Rossford, Ohio, native Bethany Zuchowski Rust to realize that she did not want to be a spectator. Instead of standing on the sidelines, she excelled in high school track, basketball and volleyball.
Her athletic prowess brought her to Heidelberg in 1988, where she studied psychology. During her time on the court, Zuchowski Rust became a pivotal member of the Student Prince volleyball team. She earned team MVP honors in 1990 and 1991 while serving as team captain.
Zuchowski Rust earned First Team Ohio Athletic Conference honors in 1989, 1990 and 1991 and finished with 1,015 career kills. She remains the program's only three-time All-OAC First Team honoree.
After graduating in 1992, Bethany spent a decade in the ever-expanding mobile phone industry. Following her marriage to her best friend John Rust III in 1999, their family established Rust & Rust LTD, which continues today in real estate ventures as well as ownership of several additional entities. Bethany serves as a secretary of the company.
A desire to ease discomfort in others directed Bethany, in 2001, to attend evening classes at Healing Arts Institute in Perrysburg, Ohio. The following year, licensed by The Ohio State Medical Board, she began her own business as a Licensed Massage Therapist and is gratified for the benefits of massage therapy both for pain relief and anxiety reduction.
In 2002, Bethany and John welcomed their first child, John IV, to their family. He was followed in 2005 by their beautiful daughter, Olivia. As her children grew, Bethany chose to withdraw from the workforce to be more available for her children, encouraging their athletic participation as well as academic performance.
Bethany remains heavily involved with school and youth sports organizations in Rossford, where she and her family still reside.
(This profile appeared in the 2016 Hall of Fame Banquet program.)
