He's saying "thank you" the best was he knows how, by running.   A man is running across America and a made a brief stop in North Central Florida. Its the man's way of pitching in and helping war veterans.

Fifty six year old John Pyle is not the average runner.

"I'm doing this something much larger than myself,"  John Pyle of Sarasota said.

His goal is to run from the West Coast to the East Coast.

"It's not like I'm challenging myself," Pyle said.

He wants to raise awareness about injured soldiers who participate in the Wounded Warrior Project which help veterans make the transition back into society after giving up so much.

"It helps them with prosthesis, it helps them get re educated helps their families,"  Pyle said.

Pyle started running in March and runs on average about 40 miles per day.  He started in San Francisco and is in North Central Florida briefly.

"I don't know, I can't do it, but I can do two miles at a time,"  Pyle said.

He doesn't do it alone his friend Fry, came out to help.

"He called me and I just came out,"  JW Fry, friend of John Pyle, said.

He runs with his friend to help him get through the intense heat of North Central Florida, heat that he says is worse than the desert.

"You can't always take back what's already been said, especially to our Vietnam veterans but you can say what you should have said all along and that's thank you,"  Fry said.

But what motivates Pyle is knowing he's helping those who risk their lives protecting others.

"Their willing to give it all and when they get hurt I feel its our responsibility to help them and that's what we're doing,"  Pyle said.

Pyle is running forty miles a day one day at a time to help those in need.

Pyle's goal is to raise one million dollars. He plans to run a 100 mile race from Key Largo to Key West Starting on May 19th.