The life of 90-year-old Joy Ryan was full of happy and bitter events. But her family and loved ones were always in the first place for her, and her own dreams were postponed for later. However, today we will prove to you that you can live “to the fullest” not only in your youth but at any age!

Joy’s family wasn’t rich. The woman lived all her life in the small town of Duncan Falls, where she worked in a supermarket. Of course, she sometimes went on vacation with her husband and children, but Joy had never seen the sea!

Two of her three sons died when they were forty years old, and she became a widow twenty years ago. Now our heroine spends most of her time in front of the TV, watching various TV shows, and rarely sees her family.

Everything changed when her beloved grandson came to visit her. The guy met several avid tourists in college and was now talking about hiking in the Appalachians to his grandmother Joy. His grandmother’s curiosity and sincere regret that she would never be able to visit such a wonderful place made his grandson think about it.

Since his grandmother was often ill, he wanted to be near her more and bring joyful moments into her pastime. Joy was 85 years old at the time, but she didn’t hesitate to become Brad’s companion. The trip to the Smoky Mountains National Park impressed both of them.

Despite their vast age gap, they got along swimmingly. Joy was overjoyed by the new experience, and Brad recognized that friendship and shared interests aren’t contingent on one’s age. Because his grandmother hasn’t seen much yet, the grandson determined that the first trip should not be the last!

Brad couldn’t afford to indulge her on his meager income, so he published their tale on a crowdsourcing platform. He told her he intended to tour her all 61 national parks in the United States. Donations eventually arrived, significantly beyond their hopes.

In the comments, many regretted that they did not think to give their loved ones the same gift. Now an experienced traveler Joy has already visited almost half of the country’s national parks and intends to see the rest.

By the way, Joy has already decided what she wants to do when she visits all the planned places. She’s excited about the idea of skydiving.