The Organization for Autism Research (OAR) is proud to welcome 13-year-old Brandon Bornn from New City, N.Y. to the RUN FOR AUTISM team. Bornn, who is the son of Laura Bergen-DeMarino and Andrew Bornn, was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) at the age of two. He will be participating in the George Wodicka Hook Mountain Half Marathon in Congers, N.Y. on April 17. This is his first attempt ever at this distance.

According to his mother, Brandon started running at a very young age. “When he was little, he used to play ‘Olympics’ in our basement. As Brandon got older, he said he was going to win his own medals some day.”

Despite his mother’s best efforts to teach him proper techniques, running didn’t come easily for Brandon. “Although he had a lot of energy, focusing it over a three-mile run was a challenge,” she said. But with a lot of patience, practice and help from his mother, Brandon got the hang of running, and is now a member of his school’s cross-country team.

Brandon set his sights on running a half marathon, a 13.1-mile race, after completing his first five-mile race during the fall of 2004. Training with a local club, the Rockland Road Runners, gives Brandon the motivation he needs to keep running. But his major source of inspiration for the half marathon is the idea of helping other people living with autism.

“I wish autism were extinct,” Brandon explained. “I don’t want to have it anymore, and I don’t want anyone else to have it, either.” When Brandon heard about the RUN FOR AUTISM and the opportunity to help other families living with autism, he was eager to get started.

Brandon and his parents have already raised more than $5,000 with the help of friends, family members, and the local community. “I have never done fundraising before, and I am not one who can easily solicit,” Bergen-DiMarino explained. “But it was for Brandon, and for him I gain an unusual ability to do things I wouldn’t normally do.” She and Brandon designed an online fundraising page that explained why Brandon was running. Once they were finished, Brandon and his mom sent out e-mails to everyone they knew, directing them to the site and asking for their support.

“We have been overwhelmed by people’s generosity on Brandon’s behalf,” said Bergen-DiMarino. Neighbors who have seen Brandon circling the block on training runs were eager to help, as were the members of his running club, who donated the proceeds of their annual inter-club challenge to Brandon and his personal RUN FOR AUTISM.

“We are delighted to have Brandon as part of the RUN FOR AUTISM team,” said OAR Executive Director Mike Maloney. “But, the real story here is about the capacity of a young man with autism and his mother to overcome obstacles and demonstrate personal ability over disability.”

Brandon’s next goal is to finish a full marathon, and he plans to once again dedicate his efforts to helping other kids and adults like him. “We want to give hope to other kids with autism and their parents,” said Bergen-DiMarino. “Brandon just wants to show people that he is never going to give up, that he will fight his autism all the way.”