Butler native Laura Crago embarked on a 3,372-mile cross-country cycling trip over 48 days, trekking through 10 states, all to honor her late father's memory.

The 1998 Butler High School graduate recently established the organization daughters4fathers to bring awareness of her journey and collect donations for charity.

The Los Angeles resident departed Santa Monica on Sunday. Crago's goal is to reach the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City by October. Her father, Wil, died in 1994 when she was 14 from a heart attack.

“It's a way of coping,” she said of the trip. “I'm past the grieving stage. It's been 20 years … but there is never a moment where I don't wonder what he'd say, or I wonder what kind of advice he'd give me. It's just how I can do something in memory of him, where you can make a difference.”

A few supportive friends will join her along the way. Some are riding with her for a day or two, while another friend who lost her father last year will be riding with Crago for the first week of the trip.

Crago is hoping to raise $25,000 for Butler County's Habitat for Humanity during her trip. She's already raised more than $9,000 for Habitat through a GoFundMe webpage and private donations. Crago chose Habitat because of her father's background.

“He was a carpenter. He built homes. That's what he was passionate about,” she said.

Ron Gigler, president of Habitat for Humanity of Butler County, said his group was excited and surprised by Crago's generosity.

“With her dad's background as a carpenter and being from the Butler area, I think Laura found this was a natural connection to Habitat for Humanity. She wanted to donate for the Butler affiliate specifically, which I think has more meaning for her with her dad, not just Habitat in general,” Gigler said. “We are looking forward to following her journey and welcoming her when she arrives in Butler.”

Crago will be traveling between 40 and 120 miles each day, depending on the climate and terrain. For instance, in Arizona, with its desert temperatures and hills, she won't be able to bike as quickly as she can through the flat cornfields of Kansas.

She'll be making a pit stop at Butler's Snack N Pack on Sept. 25 for a fundraising event, and possibly, a daylong Habitat for Humanity project the next day.

“It's very ambitious,” said Karen O'Donnell, Snack N Pack owner, of Crago's trip. “I'm hoping we can get a good crowd down here. She'd like to have a crowd when she comes down Jefferson Street, and we have the cow bells.”

O'Donnell and Crago have known each other for many years through their involvement in Butler Little Theatre.

Preparing for the trip physically and mentally has been huge for Crago. While she works as indoor cycling instructor in Los Angeles, teaching several classes each week, she has also trained on road bikes to prepare for her journey.

“A lot of the training for me isn't so much endurance. It's just time on the saddle,” she said. “Riding a road bike, a lot of it is sitting for a long time and just keeping a steady pace, even when your terrain is changing, like rolling hills or climbing, switching your gears to get your momentum. For me, it's just getting on my bike as much as I can.”

She's even talked to a fellow Butler High School alum about cycling cross country.

Brian McCandless, a 2006 graduate who has cystic fibrosis, recently finished a trip. They've messaged each other on Facebook with advice and words of encouragement.

Crago recently faced a few challenges that provided her motivation to do a cross-country trip: She had surgery on both knees last year, four weeks apart.

During her recovery, she decided to make her longtime dream of a cross-country cycling trip a reality. She's been planning her trip since last July.

Crago, who grew up in Mount Chestnut, was involved with Butler Little Theatre and the Musical Theatre Guild.

Her Butler High School extracurricular activities included track and field, sequinettes and involvement in several musicals. After graduating from Clarion University with a degree in musical theater, she moved to New York City.

Three years ago, through her job, she moved to Los Angeles. Her employer Soulcycle provides a yogalike workout experience, she said.

She hopes her cross-country trip is just the first project for her newly established daughters4fathers organization, she said.

For more information, go to www.daughters4fathers.com, or to donate, visit www.gofundme.com/daughters4fathers.