He Could’ve Traveled the World Alone — But Chose to Fulfill His Grandmother’s Dream Instead

Joy Ryan has lived for ninety years, and during that time, she’s had both happy and sad moments. But through it all, her family has always come first. Only recently has she started to follow her own dreams. This story shows that living “to the fullest” isn’t just something for the young — it’s never too late.

Joy’s family didn’t have much money. She spent her life in the small town of Duncan Falls, working at a local supermarket. She and her husband raised their children and took the occasional vacation, but Joy never got to see the ocean.

Sadly, two of her three sons passed away before they turned 40, and Joy lost her husband about 20 years ago. Her days became quiet — mostly spent watching TV and only seeing her family once in a while. But everything changed when her grandson came to visit. He had just made some new friends at college who loved to travel, and he shared stories with Joy about his hike through the Appalachian Mountains.

Joy listened with great interest. She was truly curious, and a little sad, that she had never visited places like that. Her reaction made her grandson, Brad, stop and think. Near the end of his studies, he experienced a deep personal loss — his best friend took his own life. It was a shock, and it made Brad realize how quickly life can change. He also understood how precious his time with his grandmother was and wanted to make the most of it.

At that time, Joy was already 85 years old, but she didn’t hesitate when Brad asked if she wanted to go on a trip with him. Their visit to the Smoky Mountains National Park was an amazing experience for both of them. Even with the age difference, they got along incredibly well. Joy was excited and filled with happiness from everything she saw. Brad saw that true friendship and shared adventures have no age limit.

Brad knew then that their first trip shouldn’t be their last. Joy still had so much of the world to see. His budget was small, but he decided to share their story on a crowdfunding site. He explained how he wanted to take Joy to all 61 national parks across the United States. To his surprise, people responded with great kindness — they donated much more money than he had asked for. Many people commented that they wished they had thought to do something like this for their own grandparents.

Now, Joy is a confident and experienced traveler. She’s already visited nearly half of all the national parks in the U.S. and is excited to keep going. Brad feels even happier knowing he gets to travel with someone he loves and make her smile every day.

He regularly posts photo updates on Instagram, where Joy is often seen smiling in front of breathtaking landscapes. And Joy isn’t stopping anytime soon — once she finishes visiting all the parks, she’s already decided what she wants to try next: skydiving!