Souhan: Minnesota sports teams step up to support Aurora, NAMI, mental health push

In the spring, the Minnesota Aurora realized that the team had credit remaining with the company that makes their uniforms.

At the same time, leaders of the women’s soccer team were speaking with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) about initiatives supporting mental health, both for Aurora athletes and for the public at large.

They wanted to put “988,” the number for the suicide and crisis lifeline, on their warmup jerseys. The Aurora also decided to raise money for NAMI, a nonprofit, and the 988 hotline, in part by auctioning off the warmup jerseys.

On July 17, the Trump administration announced it was eliminating the portion of the 988 hotline dedicated to LGBTQ+ youth.

“That was devastating to the community,” said Sue Abderholden, the NAMI Minnesota executive director. “We know that, especially for teens who are exploring their gender identity, who are LGBTQ+, they are at greater risk for suicide. So cutting that out was horrible.”

The Aurora played a message from KFAN radio and music star Chris Hawkey about mental health before their games. At the end of their season, they realized they had extra warmup jerseys featuring “998” and the message, “We’re glad you’re here,” another of Hawkey’s favorite messages supporting mental health.

Aurora co-founder Andrea Yoch asked Vikings.com writer and children’s book author Lindsay Young, a mental health advocate, whether any Vikings players would sign the jerseys.

The response, Yoch said, was “overwhelming.” Every local franchise quickly and eagerly had key figures and athletes sign the jerseys, which will go up for auction at 7 a.m. Monday, with the proceeds going to NAMI.

The auction, which will last two weeks, will be held at givebutter.com/c/988jerseys.

“We’re running around town, dropping off these jerseys at team headquarters, and not really knowing what was going to happen,” Yoch said. “What we’ve gotten back is just stunning. These are not athletes signing their own team jerseys. This is Jared Spurgeon and Matt Boldy and C.J. Ham and Rocco Baldelli, and a jersey signed by the entire Twins organization.”

Among the organizations that responded quickly were the Lynx, Vixen, Wind Chill (Ultimate Frisbee), Twins, Vikings, Wild and Minnesota United.

Allie Schmidt played soccer for the Gophers and is one of the founders of the Aurora. The former Allie Reinke also is married to Nate Schmidt, who is skating this summer with other NHL players at Ridder Arena and is bringing the Stanley Cup to St. Cloud on Monday in the wake of the Florida Panthers’ championship.

“This is an indication of how teams in Minnesota are just built different,” Yoch said. “Everybody is really committed to the community. Maybe that exists in other markets, but I’ve never seen anything quite like what happens here. This is an incredible testament to how strongly our teams feel about giving back to the community.”

Abderholden noticed an uptick in mental health awareness, and the need for mental health services, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. “Everybody experienced at least a couple of days of being depressed or anxious about what was happening in the world,” she said. “So we’ve seen a much greater discussion about that. With teenagers and young adults, especially those young adults who are also becoming college athletes and professionals, that is also the age where we see some of the most serious mental illnesses emerge.

“So you have this coming together of two issues. And I think there’s also, in professional sports in general, an understanding that if you have good mental health, you’ll perform better, your injuries will heal better. So I guess you could say that the head is connected to the rest of the body.”

And Minnesota sports teams are connected to real-world issues.

The Aurora’s mission statement includes this passage: “... centered on developing women’s talent on and off the field, fostering inclusivity, and creating a safe, welcoming community space for everyone.”