Herriman man completes first leg of coast-to-coast ride on America's debt

HERRIMAN — A local man is one-third of the way through his cross-country journey from San Francisco to Washington D.C., carrying letters to President Barack Obama as he drives.

Kenny Thomas' aim for his ambitious adventure is to raise awareness for the national debt, which currently totals over $13 trillion dollars. Thomas and his parents – who are travelling along side their son in their motor home – are stopping in cities to pass out literature and conduct surveys on the debt.

"The most amazing thing has been the response from the people. Everywhere we've been, people have been so supportive. And that keeps me going," Thomas said during a phone interview from Grand Junction, Colo. "It's very tiring, but it's exciting. We're doing it because we believe government is by the people, for the power."

The self-employed marketing consultant took two months off work for the trip, funding the roughly $10,000 in expenses out of his own pocket. The coast-to-coast tour began May 3, and he expects to continue travelling on US-50 to hit the nation's capitol around July 4.

Thomas is documenting his journey and conducting more surveys on his website, www.saveamericasfuture.org.

e-mail: astowell@desnews.com