KSHB 41 reporter Lily O’Shea Becker covers Franklin and Douglas counties in Kansas. Share your story idea with Lily.
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AAA expects 73 million people to travel by car this Thanksgiving. That's 90% of all holiday travelers.
"I'm filling up with gas because I'm heading to Columbia, [Missouri], so I can go have Thanksgiving with my sister," said Delinda Finn, who was at a Hy-Vee gas station in the Northland on Wednesday.
While Finn last saw her sister Tuesday, Finn and her best friend of 20 years, Harla Moritz, believe Thanksgiving is about seeing loved ones, no matter how long it has been.
"Get to see my son," Moritz said. "I haven't seen him in probably three years."
Finn and Moritz are traveling across Missouri together — at their own pace. Their first stop is Columbia to see Finn's family, and then they'll head south to Bolivar, Missouri, to visit Moritz's family.
“I told her, 'We’re going to take the back way,'" Finn said. "It might take me an extra hour. So what?”
Every Thanksgiving traveler has something they're thankful for.
“My step mom, she was just cured with cancer," Moritz said. "So were you, Delinda.”
Finn said she's thankful she's alive, and that she'll be able to drive into a Missouri sunset with her best friend. They pass the time by singing gospel music and taking in the scenery.
“You know, everybody’s always in a hurry, in a rush wanting to get there," Finn said. "Slow down. Take time to see the beauty that was made for you to look at. Don’t get in a hurry.”
Finn said she has an extra appreciation for slowing down and taking in her surroundings after surviving breast cancer.
“There’s nothing like life," Finn said. "Life is a good thing, and so many people take it for granted.”
At 17 years old, Jordan Hyde is making the trip to Nebraska by himself. He's not taking his family for granted, and he's not going to let the traffic bother him.
“I don’t really mind it (traffic) that much. I’m just thankful to be able to go see my family," Hyde said.
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