“I’ve been in the Marine Corps for 10 years. I’ve ran a lot in my training, and it has given me a very strong perspective on life. My friend Grant invited me to come run with the LA running club back in September. I was in kind of a low place, so I knew I needed a change of pace, – no pun intended – I ended up running 10 miles that day and it felt amazing. Grant told me he was going to do the marathon, training with LA Road Runners, and that I should too. I also learned about Team TMF and realized that you could raise money and do the marathon at the same time.
I decided to look into what the fundraiser is actually for. I learned about the McCourt brothers, and how they started this foundation in honor of their parents, both of which, who had MS and Alzheimer’s, respectively. I thought about what that meant to me. My grandfather died of Alzheimer’s, my other grandfather is alive, but has dementia, my cousin has MS, and I had a Marine of mine in Japan get diagnosed with MS while we were overseas, and I saw what he went through. Having these secondhand, third-hand experiences with those diseases, it hit home for me what this fundraiser is about. I knew I wasn’t doing it for the financial convenience of getting into the marathon anymore. It had a much more personal undertone to it. I decided back in September to sign up for Team TMF and officially commit to the Los Angeles Marathon.”