Marlin grew up in a broken family environment in which he moved from home to home every year. He lost his dad to suicide when he was 9 and his stepfather to a heart attack at 16. After school time and summers was spent working as a means of bringing in extra income for the family. Now he is a very happily married dad committed to ensure his children grow up in a much more stable home. This is not without it's challenges as he has two special needs teenagers. His son has a high functioning form of autism called Asperger's syndrome and his daughter has a genetic defect called Turners syndrome. Both have difficulty interacting socially with their peers as well as learning in the main stream academic environment.
As a means to supplement each child's education, the family took up the quest to visit every state in the U.S. The goal was to learn something from each travel experience. Each destination was determined by the local marathon being held in which Marlin would have to run. Their experience way exceeded any expectations they had. What began as a scrap book to chronicle their adventures became the full fledged published book "Our Life on the Run...". In addition to sharing marathon adventures, their story also entails a strong sense of love of country and an overwhelming spirit of family togetherness.
