Running together and endurance racing are the ties that bind a group of Routt County families and support them through lifelong health struggles of their children who are affected by Angelman syndrome.

These “angels” are the smiling, laughing and cheerful children and teens impacted by the rare genetic disorder of Angelman syndrome, which is often mistaken for autism or cerebral palsy. Angelman is a rare neuro‑developmental disorder that affects one in 15,000 people and is caused by a loss of function in a gene segment in the maternal 15th chromosome, according to the Angelman Syndrome Foundation.

At least four families living in Routt County are impacted by the disease, according to parents.

Mom of three children and a graduate of Colorado Mountain College in Steamboat Springs, Candy Granger and her angel son Sam Underhill, 17, started running as a team when Sam was 3 and about 30 pounds.

As a single mom, Granger did not always have a sitter capable of caring for Sam at her Routt County home, so Sam came along on runs pushed in a baby jogger. Turns out Sam loved it, and running became a favorite mother-and-son activity.

“I can tell you it has been the adventure of my life as well as a truly meaningful experience for Sam,” Granger said. “Our running community has embraced him at every high and low, giving his life profound meaning and purpose. When Sam crosses each finish line, he has a look of accomplishment and an understanding that he has been a part of something much bigger that himself.”

Now Underhill is a high school senior weighing 148 pounds, but fortunately the family received donations from two charitable organizations for a high-performance race chair valued at $6,000. The pair will use the race chair running in the 26.2-mile Chicago Marathon on Oct. 12.

The duo has participated in some 40 half-marathons or marathons together, including nine times in Steamboat.

“This (Chicago) race is especially meaningful to us because we are able to give back to an organization that has supported Sam from the very beginning,” Granger said.

The national Angelman Syndrome Foundation based in Illinois partners with the Chicago Marathon, and each partnership runner or assisted athlete is asked to raise $2,500 that is donated to the foundation.

The foundation works to support children and adults in many ways such as family and caregiver support, outreach, research and education. Three fundraiser race teams from Steamboat are raising funds through the Windy City Angels team.

For Underhill, the rare genetic disorder causes mobility issues, seizures, sleep problems and loss of speech, his mom explained. He participates in races as an assisted or adaptive athlete in the race chair, and he also participates in summer camps and skis with Steamboat Adaptive Recreational Sports.

Steamboat residents Deanna and Dave McCurdy, parents of angel Hayden, 17, a senior at Steamboat Springs High School, will run in the Chicago marathon together for the second time in support of the fundraising team.

Deanna McCurdy is a former college runner and elite off-road triathlon athlete who competed on the world stage in triathlon and now coaches the Windy City Angels, which includes dozens of Angelman parents and caregivers.

The third local team running in Chicago is Steamboat mom Ginger Johnston and son Xavier Knott, 19, who was a former long-distance track and cross-country athlete at Steamboat Springs High School. The duo is running the full marathon together for the first time.

Knott is training and raising additional funds to honor his good friend Underhill. The pair have been friends since they attended Steamboat Springs Middle School. Knott, who has autism, also is working part-time, taking classes at Colorado Mountain College and competing consistently in the Steamboat Springs Running Series.

Angels may be largely non-verbal and need assistance walking, and epilepsy is common for angels. Both Underhill and Hayden McCurdy utilize hand signs, facial expressions and a communication app on iPads. The teens both love music and enjoy interactions with people, their moms said.

Named after the Routt County town, Hayden McCurdy was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome at 16 months and did not walk until she was three-and-a-half, her mom said. Now she takes part in therapeutic swimming at Old Town Hot Springs, in horseback riding and skiing with STARS and the youth group at Steamboat Christian Center.

“The school and nonprofits really have given our kids so many opportunities and so many opportunities to be part of the community,” said McCurdy, whose family recently moved to Steamboat from Atlanta. “It’s so wonderful they are encouraging and embracing individuals who are different.”

In Colorado, angels can receive care through the Chromosome 15 and Related Disorders Clinic at Children’s Hospital Colorado in Aurora.

“We offer highly specialized care at the only clinic in the Rocky Mountain region for people with Angelman syndrome, Dup15q syndrome, Pitt Hopkins and related disorders,” according to the clinic webpage.

The Steamboat moms are excited about multiple ongoing human clinical trials to test therapies for Angelman syndrome. Individuals can learn more through the Foundation for Angelman Syndrome Therapeutics at CureAngelman.org.

“In this very small but unique world that we share,” Granger said, “I believe Angelman families are all running their own marathons every day, tirelessly committed to their children and to the community of families that lean on each other throughout the immense day-to-day challenges they face.”