Autistic boy inspires uncle to run marathon for charity

A journey of 26 miles started with a single cause for Wheaton's Jon Martin.

He'd just hit 40. He knew he could stand to lose some weight.

There was only one problem.

"I wouldn't consider myself athletic," Martin said. "I'd never run more than three or four miles at a time."

Yet on Sunday, Martin will join 45,000 other runners in the 2007 LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon.

In the end, he's doing it as much for his nephew, Carl Martin, as he's doing for himself.

Carl has autism. The affliction manifests itself mainly in motor skills for the 7-year-old. He has weakness in his hands and trouble digesting food, resulting in developmental problems. Carl says many words but doesn't converse the way boy his age typically would.

Carl attends Krejci Academy in Naperville, a developmental school run by Little Friends Inc. The Naperville not-for-profit hosts programs for children and adults with developmental, behavioral or emotional disabilities.

"He's a very sweet little boy," Martin said. "He's generally happy. Seeing what my brother goes through to overcome the learning issues is really inspirational."

So Martin is running to raise money for Little Friends. He got a bit of a late start on his sponsorship requests, but has raked in about $700 so far.

"I would've loved to have done far more than that," Martin said. "Every little I can do is a bonus."

Indeed, Martin could use the inspiration. Back in April, he developed plantar fasciitis, a form of heel pain caused by tears in the plantar fascia ligament along the bottom of the foot.

He sustained the injury as the result of wear and tear while logging about 1,000 miles of running time while training for the past 10 months.

"Typically, around mile 14 or 15, the foot starts hurting," Martin said. "There's no doubt I'll finish, but I may have to tone down some of my original goals."

Martin had hoped to run all 26 miles in less than four hours. Carl will attend the race to cheer his uncle on. Martin hopes he'll have raised a few more dollars by the time he sees his nephew at the finish line.

To help, donations may be mailed to 1206 S. Sumner St., Wheaton, IL 60187.

For more information, contact Martin at (630) 740-4178 or at jcmartin@ameritech.net.