GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. -- Staff Sgt. Brendan Brustad, 319th Air Base Wing assistant to the wing executive officer, finished a month-long run for post-traumatic stress disorder awareness here June 30, 2016.
Brustad ran at least 22 miles every day in the month of June. The number 22 represents the number of veteran suicides that occur daily based on an estimate by the Department of Veteran Affairs.
Most days Brustad ran on base, but the last five days of his campaign were spent running from Winnipeg, Canada, to Grand Forks Air Force Base. While in Canada, Brustad ran 54 kilometers a day to honor Canadian veteran suicides. Brustad said he wanted to make a difference.
“It is nowhere in comparison to what our veterans are struggling with daily, whether it be physical, emotional or spiritual,” said Brustad. “I hope this run generated more awareness for our veterans and I challenge others out there to do the same. I know not everyone can run, but I ask you; what will you do for our vets?”
Brustad finished with a total of 694 miles in 30 days of running. He said he made sure to meet mission requirements by starting his weekday runs at 3 a.m. to allow him to report for duty on time.
When Brustad started the run, he said his coworkers started to call him Forrest. They were referencing the character Forrest Gump who ran across the country. Brustad said the big difference between he and Forrest is that Forrest “just felt like running,” but he is running for a purpose. After that, Brustad started using the hashtag “FORUS” because he said he’s running for us.
The purpose of the run was to bring greater awareness to the veteran population and some of the struggles they endure. The run meant a lot to local veterans.
“It’s humbling to know that someone cares that much to bring awareness to a topic that isn’t talked about too much among veterans,” said Dusty Hillebrand, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1874 commander.
When asked about what’s next, Brustad replied with a quote by famous writer Arthur C. Clarke: “The limits of the impossible can only be defined by going beyond them into the impossible.”