Sophie’s Squad 5K boosts athlete mental health awareness

COON RAPIDS, Minn. — Hundreds of runners gathered at Bunker Hills on Saturday for the annual Sophie’s Squad 5K, an event supporting youth mental health awareness through open conversation and community action. 

Getting nearly 400 participants to the starting line, the run was a visual reminder of how far the nonprofit and its mission have come.

Sophie’s Squad was founded in 2021 in memory of Sophie Wieland, a smiley and 14-year-old athlete whose death by suicide moved her coaches and teammates to take action. 

“It’s really cool how this whole thing turned out to be after getting started, breathtaking,” said co-founder Terry Hughes, who started the organization alongside his daughter, Gabbie Hughes, now a forward for the Ottawa Charge of the Professional Women’s Hockey League.

“Just remember hearing the news that she lost her battle to mental health at such a young age, and just struggled in silence for so long. Really made us want to change that,” Hughes said. 

At Saturday’s run, many of Sophie’s former teammates, now on college teams, brought friends to build awareness and support for mental health resources targeting athletes, coaches, and families.

“We just want people to know that it’s okay to not be okay. And there are people out there who care, and those conversations are wanted,” said Hughes.