Our Story

Not long after he moved to northern Virginia, a mutual friend introduced us.  Our friend didn’t say too much about his vision when we met and I really didn’t notice at first.  Matt has adjusted so much with his vision, that he can center his blind spot so it looks like he is making eye contact.  It took me a few dates to realize that he couldn’t see me when he was looking right at me.  I thought he was a very generous tipper, but later found out he was guessing on the bill amount and giving a tip off of that. We also met up for our dates since he couldn’t drive.  One day he told me about his vision loss.  The more we got to know each other, the more I realized that he could “see” me better than anyone else I had ever dated--everything between us just felt right.  We’ve been married since 2007.  

New Year's Eve Race -- December 31, 2007

We welcomed twin daughters in the spring of 2011 and a son in 2013.  

Emily and Marisa -- one week old

Zachary -- one week old

We share a love for running.  Matt runs as an outlet and a way to relax.  If he doesn’t run he is almost as moody as when the Steelers lose.  I run for fun and for exercise.  We have run lots of races together, and by together I mean Matt finishes way ahead of me and cheers me on at the finish and then collects his awards for whatever age group or overall place he might have won. 

I had just run my first marathon when we met and had gotten the marathon bug.  Matt had run two marathons before we met, but wasn’t really interested in that distance.  I talked him into running the 2006 Marine Corps Marathon.  He set a goal of running a Boston Marathon qualifying time.  He was just shy of the time by his age and became determined to try again.  We took 2007 off since the Marine Corps Marathon was so close to our wedding, but ran the 2008 marathon.  That time, he qualified.  

Matt and Sarah at the finish of the 2008 MCM -- Matt with a Boston qualifying
time and sarah with a new PR (at that time)

The Boston Marathon is one of the few marathons in the country with a visually impaired category.  He placed third in the division at the 2009 Boston Marathon.  At the awards ceremony, he was approached by the Massachusetts Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired and asked to run on their team.  Matt had never been a part of an organization for the blind or visually impaired.  It was our first opportunity to meet other runners of varying speeds and to be a part of a community that shared many similarities to Matt.  He went back to Boston and placed second in 2010.  

Mile 17 - 2010 Boston Marathon
Still Running Strong

2010 - 2nd Place, Visually Impaired Finisher
That wasn't the trophy he took home!

The actual trophy

He’s run the California International Marathon twice, winning the visually impaired division in 2010 and placing fourth visually impaired runner overall in 2012.  He also runs the Wilson Bridge Half Marathon annually and places in its visually impaired category.  Although some of the U.S. qualifying times are a stretch, Matt is well on his way to qualifying for the U.S. team for the 2016 Paralympics.  

Recent Family Photo