Marking its fifth anniversary, the St. Anthony Mental Health Matters 5K Run and Walk on Saturday, May 1, continued to make strides in raising awareness, combatting stigma and supporting people in need of assistance.
“I’m super proud of the Carroll community that comes and supports this. We’ve raised money for the mental health community to put a little hope back into their lives,” Deb Burnett, St. Anthony Outpatient psychiatric nurse practitioner said at the event.
“I’m really proud of everyone who comes together and raises money for this resource we can provide to the community, and it affects a lot of lives,” she added.
The event drew 170 participants. The fundraising total was not available early this week.
Angelo Luis, St. Anthony pastoral care director and one of the event’s organizers, said, “I think it was fantastic. The weather was great, the venue, Fairview Elementary was a great place, the band (Carroll High School pep band, I think the participants enjoyed the music. It was just a great event overall. It went beyond my expectations.”
Funds were raised through T-shirt and registration fee, cash donations, and silent auction on donated baskets filled with a variety of items.
“When somebody in the mental health community has a need, we have a (Mental Health Matters) committee that gets together” and considers ways to help, Burnett said.
She said funds have gone toward electric bills, medications, housing, transportation, car seats, washers and dryers, and more.
Burnett noted the event has grown from about 150 participants the first year.
This year the course used the recreation trail in north Carroll. The event began in the Fairview Elementary School gym with brief remarks by Burnett and Angelo Luis, St. Anthony pastoral care director; singing of the national anthem by Dr. Amy Canuso, St. Anthony psychiatrist; and prayer by Father Patrick Behm, St. John Paul II Parish pastor.
Runners and walkers gathered on the Fairview playground, and Carroll High School pep band played throughout the event.
The course took participants north along Grant Road and the Carroll Municipal Golf Course and Carroll High School to the soccer fields near Carroll Middle School, then returned.
In the Fairview gym, many different agencies addressing mental health care had information tables. Participants included Carroll Area Suicide Loss Support Group, Lutheran Family Service, Family Resource Center, Seasons, New Opportunities, Heart and Solutions Counseling Agency, Carroll County Public Health, National Alliance on Mental Health, Catholic Charities, Caring Hearts and Community Care of Iowa.
Burnett said it was a special opportunity to have information about all those resources in one place.
“That’s why I love having them here because mental health resources are so scarce, especially in Iowa, so it’s just nice people, all in one room, can say, ‘What do you have to offer?’ Even I learn things as I go around to tables, and they have new programs or new projects coming up, and we can do networking and get to know each other. The closer we are together, the better it is for our patients’ most optimal care because we know where we can send them.”
Participation in Saturday’s run and walk had particularly strong meaning for Brady and Jody Boell, their daughter, Minka, and a number of other family members who took part. Brady and Jody’s son, Kelton, took his life on New Year’s Day this year at age 18. He was a senior at Carroll High School.
The KB (Kelton Boell) Project has been started in an effort to prevent other families from experiencing similar heartbreak.
The KB Project website says, “After his passing, his family and community came together to transform their grief into purpose. They created a nonprofit dedicated to protecting, uplifting, and supporting youth, families, and the world Kelton cared about most.
“Through advocacy, scholarships, outdoor initiatives, and community-driven programs, The KB Project nonprofit continues Kelton’s legacy of kindness, resilience, and service. Every donation and every effort directly supports kids, families, and meaningful community impact.”
The website lists the following KB Project mission pillars: youth mental health and suicide awareness, scholarships for trade school students, support for Department of Natural Resources/wildlife initiatives, and community programs.
The website says, “Kelton was known for his kindness, quiet strength, and love for the outdoors. He had a way of making people feel seen without needing attention for himself. To those closest to him, he was thoughtful, loyal, and deeply caring.”
The Boells said in an email to the Times Herald, “Events like this help us show other parents and students that they’re not alone in a real, visible way. We were also supported so heavily by St. Anthony Regional Hospital staff during our loss, and this is a small way we could show our gratitude and support to them. There is still a stigma with mental health and asking for help, and adolescents and young adults are impacted in Iowa. We want to encourage and foster conversations about mental health and promote the resources that our community has to offer to those people and their parents. If sharing Kelton’s life and story or simply being present helps even one person feel a little less alone or more willing to reach out, then we’ve made an impact. We also want others to know that we’re here and willing to help if they ever find themselves in our situation.”
What does the family want people to know about our experience that they believe can help others?
“We had some amazing people around us who are very knowledgeable and supportive, but we know not everyone has that,” they said. “Seeking help soon after was the best thing we could have done. Asking for help is not weak, it’s knowing that some things you just can’t handle on your own. This is not a straight-line process, and the bad days will come, but so will some good ones. Also, this does not define them or the person they lost. This is a part of their story.”
The Boells said of the run/walk event’s potential impact, “Often mental health struggles can make you feel isolated. That many people together shows others that they are not alone, that there is support. There is a sense of community that comes from these events and while everyone may not be in our specific situation or as open as us, they are there for a reason, and sometimes that’s all that needs to be known. Walks like this reduce the stigma, give a way for participants to act even if they don’t want to share their story. Also, the funds go to a great cause.”
The Boells said they hope to become more involved throughout this year in mental health initiatives and fundraising, but their focus the past year has been on a memorial scholarship, tree-plantings, and benches in some of Kelton’s favorite places to give back to those communities and wildlife initiatives.
Kelton’s sister, Minka, a Carroll High freshman, did not actually walk in the event, but participated through her performance on clarinet in the school’s pep band.
She also took time to walk and see some of the squares that were chalked near Fairview, including some done for Kelton.
“We can’t thank the rest of the band and Mr. Lu (Director Wayne Lu) enough for supporting her while we participated,” they said.
One of Kelton’s great-aunts, Julie (Kennebeck) Gilland of Shelby said she took the day off from her hairstyling business in order to participate in the run/walk “so that (Kelton’s) legacy will live on. And we think about him every day.”
“Nobody saw it coming,” Gilland, who grew up in Lidderdale. attended grade school in Mount Carmel and is a 1981 Kuemper Catholic High School graduate, said of Kelton’s suicide. “That’s mental health. It sneaks up on you, and it can consume your whole mind.
“Exercise is a really good form of mental health, too, so I’ve tried to exercise more just to stay positive.”
Gilland, one of the final finishers in the event, noted, “I was chasing two 2-year-olds (grandchildren) through the whole walk. They took it nice and slow, so that helped grandma out quite a bit.”
“It’s great to see all the participants (in the run/walk), and from what I know, it’s growing every year,” Gilland said. “It’s great to see all the people here, alld the (silent auction) baskets they can bid on to raise more money to help families. It’s just a good way to spend the morning, helping out the community and being part of the community.”
Gilland also lost another great-nephew, Camden Kennebeck, 20, of Williamsburg, to suicide last year. Camden, son of Corey Kennebeck and Julie (Knudsen) Kennebeck died on Dec. 16. He graduated in 2023 from HLV High School in Victor.
“So it’s really important to our family to recognize mental health,” Gilland said. “That was quite a loss, these two young boys at such young ages.”