Willoughby was recently a stop for Noah Coughlan, who is seeking becoming only the third person in history to cross each of the 50 states in the United States on foot. Coughlan began his Run for America campaign, his fifth and final run across America, in October last year. According to Coughlan, th e run will total 5,500 miles across 20 states and is a tribute to highlight American spirit, stories of the American people, rare disease families and some of the remaining World War II veterans. Coughlan said he has crossed 36 states previously with 14 states remaining. When he finishes this final run on July 4 in Hawaii, he will become the only third person ever to have crossed all 50 states on foot. As part of the recent stop in Willoughby, Coughlan stopped by the Willoughby Police Department. Police Chief James Schultz described him as an amazing human being and patriot. “He took time out of his incredible journey to meet many of my officers and our firefighters, and talk about his goals to raise patriotism across the country,” Schultz said. “I greatly appreciate his dedication and sacrifices, thank him for stopping by and wish him the very best in his travels.” As he was escorted through Willoughby by police and fire, Coughlan made the brief stop at the police department. In addition to that stop, Coughlan took time out from his travels and braved the frigid weather to meet with some of the first responders, as well as citizens, Schultz said. “He was presented with a Willoughby PD patch and challenge coin before continuing west,” the chief said, noting that the police department wishes him safe travels as he finishes his journey. Noah Coughlan began his Run for America campaign in October last year. The run will total 5,500 miles across 20 states. (James Schultz)Noah Coughlan began his Run for America campaign in October last year. The run will total 5,500 miles across 20 states. (James Schultz)Show Caption1 of 2Noah Coughlan began his Run for America campaign in October last year. The run will total 5,500 miles across 20 states. (James Schultz)Expand The 41-year-old ultra marathoner and filmmaker is from Vacaville, California. In 2002, Coughlan graduated from Vacaville Christian High School and was interested in joining the military after 9/11. However, after his father suffered a catastrophic leg amputation, Coughlan helped him learn how to walk again and recover for many years. Coughlan went on to graduate from Napa Valley College Police Academy during the 2008 Great Recession. It was then that he shifted his focus toward rare disease advocacy to help two childhood friends from his local church battling an ultra rare brain disease called Batten Disease. Coughlan calls the final trek across the country “an inevitable necessity.” “America is a shared experience,” he said. “We all bring something to our experience and every time you see the flag going by, we all stand a little bit taller.” Noah Coughlan began his Run for America campaign in October last year. The run will total 5,500 miles across 20 states. (James Schultz) When he was 27 years old, Coughlan completed his first solo transcontinental run across America, which was 2,500 miles from San Diego to Jacksonville, Florida. In 2013, Coughlan completed his second solo run across the country on a northern route, which was 3,100 miles from San Francisco to Boston. Coughlan initially added an American Flag to his jogging stroller for safety concerns to be seen to drivers, but the flag eventually became a symbol of hope and encouragement. By the age of 31, Coughlan had run 3,000 miles again from New York City to San Diego. He said this third run was for all 30 million Americans facing more than 7,000 known rare diseases. In 2020, Coughlan expanded the effort internationally by running 600 miles across Ireland for the 300,000 Irish with rare diseases. Coughlan said he barely finished his run on St. Patrick’s Day as European borders were closing rapidly in response to the pandemic. Coughlan was one of the last Americans out on a plane home to a locked down United States. ​ In 2023, Coughlan ran 3,700 miles from the U.S. Canada border at Blaine, Washington. to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. on his fourth ocean to ocean run. He said this was a tribute to publicly thank and recognize the American Veterans, as well as active duty military with an emphasis and urgency on interviewing World War II Veterans as they approach the age of 100 and population numbers decrease. Coughlan hopes to complete a feature-length film documentary, chronicling the entire story in 2027, and rest and recover. ...read more read less