[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 109 (Thursday, June 22, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S2219]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO BRAD AND JOY RYAN

 Mr. BROWN. Mr. President, I ask my colleagues to join me in 
recognizing and celebrating the accomplishments of two Ohioans from 
Duncan Falls, Brad Ryan and his grandmother, Joy Ryan. Together, they 
visited every National Park--all 63 of them--and they set a world 
record along the way. Joy is the oldest woman to visit every National 
Park. It took them 8 years and brought them new adventures all over the 
country.
  In 2015, Brad invited Joy to camp and hike with him in the Smokey 
Mountains. Joy was 85 at the time and accepted the challenge. She had 
never been to a mountain before, and when they reached the top, she 
remembers a group of college kids cheering for them. This was just the 
beginning. Over the past 8 years, they have ziplined at the New River 
Gorge in West Virginia, where Joyce broke the record for the oldest 
person to complete the course. They whitewater rafted at Wrangell-St. 
Elias National Park in Alaska. At the Great Sand Dunes National Park in 
Colorado, Joy even rolled down a sand dune. Their final trip, to 
National Park of American Samoa, took them 6,700 miles from their home 
in Duncan Falls, OH.
  Brad didn't set out to take his grandmother to every National Park; 
he knew she hadn't seen mountains or deserts or oceans, and he wanted 
to make sure she had the chance to experience all the natural wonder 
our country has to offer. Along the way, they accomplished something 
remarkable. Congratulations.

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