Thank you for visiting my Personal Fundraising Page.  My name is Geoff Crist.  I live in Elkhart, Indiana with my wife Christi, and our three children, Shelby, Sydney, and Garrett.  I am an Elkhart City Firefighter/Paramedic and member of IAFF Local 338.  Christi kept telling me I needed a hobby, so I'm off and running...literally.  I am going to be running the Chicago Marathon in honor of my daughter Sydney, and I will be raising money for the Organization for Autism Research in the process. 

Sydney was diagnosed with Autism at the age of 3.  She is non-verbal and still struggles with many things that come easily to typical children.  It is still not known exactly what causes autism, or what the best treatment options are.  Autism Awareness is very important to us as a family, and we spend a lot of time educating ourselves and others about the disability.  We hope to recover Sydney from Autism with biomedical treatments and dietary interventions.  It is our hope that  research through organizations such as OAR will provide more treatment options that can help children like Sydney.

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to make a contribution to my fundraising efforts. Many thanks for your support -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!

Sincerely,

Geoff Crist & Family

PS Thanks for all the support.  I finished the marathon in about 4.5 hours.