Mark Stephen Clifton, a native San Diegan, is an award winning free-lance journalist. His articles have appeared in the San Diego Reader, San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Family Magazine, and other local periodicals. He is the former president of Maranatha Surfing Association and holds a second-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do from Ocean Beach Martial Arts Blue Wave School where he is a retired instructor. He now lives in Bay Park with his wife, Maggie and is presently working on a novel that takes place in Ocean Beach.