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Million Mile Man
Freddie Hoffman
River Edge, New Jersey

Freddie is a 44 year old learning disabled adult who rides his bike across the country every summer to raise money for the Leukemia Society. His mother and 19 of his maternal relatives died of leukemia. His bike is named after his mother: "Ruthie 3".

Freddie attended a private school for the mentally challenged. He was rejected by his peers and turned inside himself. He was fascinated by the US space program and pledged to ride his bike the same distance as the earth is from the moon.

Freddie began to take longer and longer bike rides from his home in River Edge. At some point, he began to get pledges from people to match his mileage. For a time he used his own money to support his bike trips. Because he is a custodian and has a meager income he was limited as to how far he could go. Usually his trips took him just east of the Mississippi.

A local company executive heard his story and decided to underwrite his trips. To date, Freddie has visited most of the 48 states. The Schwinn Bicycle Company donated a new bike to Freddie for his efforts.

To date, Freddie has raised over $500,000 by himself and has logged over 1 million miles. He is a church custodian and makes $800 per month. He shovels snow in the winter to supplement his income. He is unselfish in his work and does not use any of the pledged funds for himself.

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