Even among little people, Mark is considered short. He finally met another "short dwarf" at a Little People of America conference - the first time he was truly eye-to-eye with someone. Eventually he married his soul-mate and life was perfect. They even had a baby when doctors said it was extremely risky, and hadn't been done before with their rare type of dwarfism. Minus about three feet of height, they were the American Dream.
Then in December of 2004, Mark’s wife Anu was involved in a head-on automobile accident and paralyzed from the neck down. Mark was told she had a spinal injury similar to Christopher Reeve (Superman) from the neck down and would always need a ventilator to breathe. After five months in the hospital, Anu passed away in her sleep only weeks before she was to come home. Since then, Mark’s already powerful message of overcoming obstacles and embracing differences has become even more inspirational. He is the proud father of a five-year old daughter named Priya, who he raised on his own for three years (now happily remarried to Carol); and he is the President of the Arizona Chapter (http://AZlpa.org) of Little People of America (http://lpaonline.org).
Mark knows that inspiring others and sharing his story is his true calling in life. Anu's motto was to "seize the day" and Mark continues to honor his wife by spreading her message to seize the day - don't wait for tomorrow because we truly don't know what tomorrow will bring. Dedicated to educating and inspiring others about diversity, character counts, bullying, tolerance and acceptance - Mark's motto is "embrace difference, don't hide from it"! His message is inspiring to audiences of all ages. Students relate to his struggles of being picked on and called names in grade school. Adults enjoy his sense of humor and his zest for life, no matter what is thrown at him. Mark's message is truly one that you will not soon forget.