SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The 437 Project set and achieved an ambitious goal in 2024: 12 runners crossing South Dakota in a relay from the Wyoming border to the Iowa border. The effort highlighted the importance of mental health and resources available for anyone who might be struggling while raising more than $315,000 for the Sioux Falls-based Helpline Center.
But it’s a state-wide endeavor. A South Dakota sunrise on Sept. 19 greeted runner Marty Wennblom of Rapid City who launched the journey eastward from the Wyoming border near Spearfish.
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“I got so many people, the wind at my back, right, a great team,” Wennblom said.
KELOLAND’s Dan Santella was among the dozen runners. The Black Hills in western South Dakota might offer a runner more literal ups and downs when compared with the eastern half of the state, but the views are exceptional. On the mind of runner Mark Scharnberg of Sioux Falls was his late cousin Troy who lost his life to mental illness two decades ago.