Marco first came to Fortune in 2019 as an Employment Services participant and resident at the Castle. After running his first marathon spontaneously last year, he decided to participate again as a Fortune Flyer this fall.  

Now, he’s back running and more determined than ever. “The toughest part was when you bend those corners, and you got all the people in the excitement,” he said. “I’m training harder [this time]. If you sweat more in training, you bleed less in work. Last year, I didn’t train as much, and I felt the pain.”  

Even though it was a grueling run last year, he still crossed the finish line. “It’s like a badge of honor for me,” Marco said. “I survived certain things that people couldn’t possibly imagine going through. And to still be able to hold a smile. That’s what Fortune does. And a lot of it depends on you being your own superhero.” 

Part of Marco’s journey was landing an internship with Mayor Bloomberg last year. He was thrilled at the opportunity and was touched by the people who gave him the support he needed to get there, one of them being David Rosenburg, the founder of Fortune. 

After finishing the race, he gave his medal to David as a thank you. “I gave it to David because if it wasn’t for him, I really could have been in jail,” Marco said. “It was like I didn’t know that there was somebody out there that could have gotten me an internship with a mayor that got me so many jobs.” 

Marco says that David never missed a Thursday night meeting and that it was impactful to see. “It feels like we have a voice,” he said. “And it shows me that there are people from all different walks of life or different ethnicities that have been justice-involved and stuff going on in their life, and a lot of people don’t understand it. I have PTSD from that. So, it’s just good to know that there’s a place for people. Fortune is a great stepping stone to wherever you got to go.” 

Marco is excited to hit the pavement this fall as he runs for the Fortune Flyers. “Keep going, and don’t ever quit,” he said. “At the end of the day, don’t worry about what anybody says.”