Niagara Falls Police Detective Lt. Kristina “Tina” Zell probably never imagined that one day she’d become a marathon runner.
Until that was just what she did.
Now, for the second year in a row, she’ll also be remembered with a marathon race staged in her honor in the Falls.
Runners will gather one day before what would have been Zell’s 51st birthday, Aug. 16, for the second annual “Running With The Rapids” race. The race, which debuted in 2025, features 5K and 10K courses as well as a 1-mile walk.
“I think the first year went amazingly well,” said Falls Police Detective Steve Kerfoot, a former colleague of Zell and a race organizer. “The number of participants last year exceeded our expectations. We learned a lot and were taking those lessons and learning from them.”
A beloved and deeply respected 22-year veteran of the Falls Police force, Zell died on Nov. 7, 2022, after a lengthy battle with what was described as “a COVID-19-related illness.”
A relentless investigator who fellow detectives frequently described as “a badass with a smile,” Zell was always remembered for her time as a recruit at the Niagara County Law Enforcement Academy (NCLEA). There she had struggled with the academy’s requirement to complete a one-mile run in order to graduate.
Zell became so dedicated to overcoming the one-mile run challenge that, years later, she pushed herself to become an accomplished marathon runner. She then returned to the academy as a physical training instructor.
It was that lead-by-example attitude that Kerfoot said convinced him and others to organize a race in Zell’s honor.
“Our goal last year was to make a good first impression with runners, to set ourselves apart,” Kerfoot said.
Proceeds from the race will benefit the Child Advocacy Center of Niagara. Kerfoot said it’s an organization that was “special” to Zell.
“Tina worked with them a lot in her investigations,” Kerfoot said. “And we still work with them and they do such a great job. They are a huge part of a lot of our cases.”
Kerfoot said the goal of the race is to honor Zell and continue to recognize her contributions to law enforcement and her community.
“(Tina) had a talent for finding the best qualities in people and she took the effort to help them,” he said. “We’re trying to pay forward some of what she gave us.”
For more information and to sign up for the race, go to https://tinyurl.com/3w9mkmxd.