on october 17, 1975, mcm founder colonel james l. fowler wrote a memo to his supervisor, major general michael p. ryan, outlining his idea of creating a marine corps reserve marathon to promote goodwill between the military and the post-vietnam community. colonel fowler believed an event like this would showcase the marine corps, serve as a recruiting tool, and give local marines an opportunity to qualify for the boston marathon. the marathon also serves as a way to raise money for a wide variety of charities.