Dr. John Wesley Slider has been running for five decades and running past forty for eighteen years. He is married to Lillian, and has two married children. Heather is married to Michael, and their son is Matthew. William is married to Tina. John is a retired Marine Corps Reserve Lieutenant Colonel (Armor and Infantry). He retired as a United Methodist pastor in 2010, and is currently a Free Methodist pastor and a police chaplain. John has coached several different sports including cross country and track at the high school level. He currently is a high school volleyball referee and girls lacrosse umpire. John has published over a dozen books.