Suburban runner completes cross-country journey

Katie Visco ran barefoot into the Pacific Ocean Tuesday, a joyous finale to her 3,132.5-mile journey across the United States.

"I did it!" she cried, tears running down her face.

The 24-year-old Glen Ellyn native had just completed her run across the United States, a journey that took her from Boston to San Diego, through 15 states and nine pairs of Puma running shoes.

Her parents Diana and Jim were on the beach for her celebration, along with her brother Tyler and family and friends, including many folks she met along the way.

The former Glenbard West High School cross-country runner was determined to run the last 1 1/2 miles on Tuesday, despite a nagging knee injury that's forced her to slow her pace to a walk since early December.

She hit the beach at 11:15 a.m. Pacific time. On Tuesday night, she was tired, happy and still trying to process her emotions.

"The one thing I can think right now is everything out there in the world is possible," Visco said. "Seeing the water and hitting the ocean and knowing that I did it... now everything is possible. It was total bliss."

Visco's journey started March 29. She ran 18 miles a day, sometimes with runners from high-school cross country teams. She raised $11,000 to support Girls on the Run, an organization devoted to promoting the health and overall well-being of young girls.

Along the way, she and the friend who followed in a car stayed in the homes of 85 families, mostly strangers who were friends of friends willing to put them up out of kindness.

Visco, a graduate of Carleton College, said she will spend the next week relaxing. But the young woman known for her leadership, enthusiasm and commitment is not about to stop following her dreams.

She plans to start writing a book, retracing her steps back across the United States - but this time in a car - to revisit the places and people who touched her along the way. She wants to continue to talk to high school students about the importance of dreams and goals and finding one's passion.

And she plans to keep running. "My goal," she says, "is to run across every continent."