I met Richard at a Crossfit competition held at his gym. We started talking and realized we had a lot in common, we are both immigrants and we both share a passion for fitness and sports. We talked about futbol (that's right not football) and we hit it off from the get go. The most important thing we shared was that we are both parents of kids with disabilities; Richard’s son has a rare muscle condition called nemaline myopathy; my son was diagnosed with autism.

Despite Luke’s disability, Richard doesn’t see his son as a challenge; instead, he enjoys, embraces, and thrives from his everyday life with Luke. Richard doesn’t see labels, he enjoys what was given to him. I 100% share that feeling for my son.

 As I started spreading the word people offered to support/sponsor me, then I thought that maybe I can do it too and hopefully raise awareness for Richard’s foundation and for autism.

 I am doing this to support Richard and all those families in need of resources to give their loved ones a better quality of life. I hope to be able to put my effort and pain through this marathon row to raise awareness and funds to help others.