A c-5 quadriplegic, Marlin Weston has become a leader in disabilities issues and combating alcohol abuse at the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. He serves on the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council with distinction and, after having won his position to the tribal council in 1994, Weston helped lead the effort to add the Americans with Disabilities Act to the tribal constitution.

Marlin has an intimate and tragic knowledge of the issues. He became quadriplegic in a 1984 automobile accident that involved alcohol. In the aftermath of his accident, Marlin found few, if any, services existed for the disabled on the Reservation. He decided to attack the problem through a number of strategies. Instead of waiting for experts to come to the Reservation, Marlin decided to become one himself, undertaking college coursework for which he will soon complete a Bachelor's in human services. He became a co-founder of the Quad Squad, a disability group founded in 1989 to advocate for the disabled. Notably, despite his own disabilities and the struggles they entail, Marlin become an alcohol and drug counselor, expending time and efforts to help others on the Reservation.

Marlin’s group has raised awareness in the Reservation about the struggles people with disabilities must undertake. Due in no small part to Marlin and his group’s efforts, wheelchair ramps started appearing, funding for disabilities’ services had increased, and general access for the disabled began to rise, as well. But he wanted to do more. Marlin ran for the Tribal council in 1994 and won by a landslide. Among the first things that he did included adopting the Americans with Disabilities Act to the Tribal constitution. When President Clinton signed the act, he left all of the reservations exempt due to their status as sovereign nations. Marlin helped ours become the first tribe to adopt the Act. In the wake of this victory, the National Congress of American Indians asked Marlin to speak at its forum and to help advise other tribes adopt the landmark act. Marlin continues his efforts to prevent drinking and driving, an issue very close to his heart since his accident –– and by the fact that he lost both his sister and nephew to auto accidents involving alcohol. To honor their memory and to raise awareness about and action against drinking and driving, he holds an annual walk and horseback ride from where his nephew died to where his sister was killed. Due to his commitment, Marlin received an award for public service in 1993 from Barbara Bush in Washington DC, in an event sponsored by Maxwell House.

In this historic land of Crazy Horse, Marlin Weston works long and hard, and far beyond the call of duty. He helps people in his neighborhood, at work, or whenever and wherever he can and must. People come to his house at all hours, where he stands at the ready to help them. He gives encouragement to those who need it and help to those in finding the resources they need. If he can't find resources, he gives out of his own pocket. Marlin speaks at schools about the dangers of drinking and driving, encouraging the students toward making the right choices. He also educates students and faculty alike on disabilities and many other tribal concerns. Marlin's current project involves addressing the upswing in cancer, diabetes, and heart disease at the Reservation, and he has secured promises from the EPA and other government agencies to test the Reservation water supplies, which may provide the cause for at least some of the rising health threats. In all things and all ways, Marlin Weston works to serve his community, overcoming his disabilities, family tragedies, and the hard history of many aspects of reservation life. In doing so, Marlin Weston not only has helped his fellow citizens, but also provided a role model for all as to what an engaged, caring citizen can do for his or her community.

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