I ask him to tell me the story that moved the women of southwest Iowa to tears—the secret sign that got him to keep running. “Nineteen-ninety-nine is when my first granddaughter was born,” he says. “Her name is Celena.” Cain was on a long trip and thought he might miss the birth, but he arrived at the hospital in the nick of time. “As soon as I looked at [Celena’s] face,” he continues, “the first thought that went through my mind was, What do I do to make this a better world?” “I didn’t know what that was going to...
