Jesuit priest finishes bike tour for poverty

Key West, Fla. (AP) -- A Kansas City Jesuit priest has arrived in Key West after his 5,000-mile bike ride to raise awareness about poverty.

The Rev. Matthew Ruhl touched his bike's front tire Saturday to a Florida Keys icon -- the Southernmost Point in the continental United States. Ruhl and 11 other riders who made the trek from Cape Flattery, Wash., were welcomed with spraying champagne and cheers. The tour lasted 99 days and crossed 5,052 miles.

During the diagonal cross-country trek, the entourage rode between 13 and 100 miles per day, assisted at food banks, met with homeless people, observed poverty reduction programs and raised money and awareness for their cause.

Ruhl was inspired by Catholic Charities USA's call to reduce poverty in America by 50 percent by 2020.

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