(lively music) - Hello, and welcome to Prairie Pulse.

Coming up a little bit later in the show, we'll learn about the Plains Art Museum in Fargo, North Dakota.

But first, joining me now is one of the visionaries of the 10.15 Project, Jen Burgard.

Jen, thanks for joining us today.

- Thank you for having me.

- As we get started, tell the folks a little bit about yourself and your background.

- Yep.

My name is Jen, as you said.

I'm actually from here in Fargo, North Dakota.

I went to NDSU, went to school here, and I originally started off in a career in interior design for years and then kind of left that world and went into the nonprofit sector.

- [John] Okay.

- Yeah.

- Well, 10.15 project, what is the 10.15 project?

- The 10.15 project is something new that myself and a few others sort of came up with that is something that's really never been done in the state of North Dakota.

And it is a relay run across the state.

It begins in Medora, North Dakota, and it ends right here in West Fargo.

So we will have 12 runners that are going to be taking turns with a baton and all, going all the way across the state, just about 480 miles.

- So you said it's relatively new.

When did it start?

- January.

(Jen chuckles) - Well, it just started in January of 2026.

- That's right.

That's when planning started.

And we kind of looked at a schedule and looked at what we wanted to do and said, "Can we make this happen by October?"

And we all pulled together, myself and the other project visionaries, and just said, "What do we got to do to make this happen?"

So.

- So, go back a little bit, why did the project start?

- The project started because, I will say, one of the gentlemen on our team came to me and said, "Hey, I love to run, but I really want to start running for a purpose and for a reason.

And I would love that reason to coincide with pregnancy and infant loss because that's really important to me" and it's important to me.

And so we set out on that and he said, "You know, I want to go bigger.

Actually, I want to do this bigger thing."

And he said, "There's this project down in South Dakota where they run a relay across the state and it's for suicide awareness and prevention."

I said, "Okay."

And he goes, "I did it one time.

It's really cool."

So I'm like, "Okay."

And he's just started getting into it and getting into it.

And then we said, "All right, I think this makes sense."

You know, I think we really wanted to bring more awareness towards pregnancy and infant loss.

It's something that we just don't talk about much.

And so we said, well, this is the perfect platform to do that.

It's a great platform that we can reach the western half of the state.

And we just believe that we could carry memories, carry remembrance, and carry these names all the way across the state and make something memorable for families.

- Well, it's called the 10.15 Project.

When does the project take place and why did you choose those dates?

- Absolutely, so October 15th is when the project officially kicks off in Medora, and we chose those dates because October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month with October 15th being Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.

So those days are really important.

And specifically October 15th is one of our visionaries, that's one of his daughter's birthdays as well.

So the date holds a lot of remembrance and semblance for folks like us that have experienced that.

And so it just fit.

I know it's a little risky, right?

October in North Dakota, we all know it could be one of six ways.

But I think we're going to take it in stride.

And 15th through the 18th, it'll take four days to reach from the beginning to the end in West Fargo.

And that's where our dates came from.

- So let's back up just a second.

What is the mission?

You have a mission statement, I believe.

What's the mission of the 10.15 Project?

- Our mission is really just to bring more awareness, a number one, to pregnancy and infant loss.

Number two, we also want to raise funds so that we can support organizations in our state that are doing the work of helping those families when those losses happen.

So those are our two big goals because these organizations, you know we can bring awareness and say, "Hey, there's these organizations that can help and these folks can do this."

But without funding, there really isn't capacity to do the work.

And so our goal really set out twofold.

So we can raise awareness, but we also got to make sure that we're supporting these organizations that are doing that work.

- Yeah, now you mentioned starting off, you got back into the nonprofit sector.

So 10.15 Project is nonprofit, but does it have paid staff, all volunteer?

Tell me about it.

- Yep.

10.15 Project is fully volunteer.

We are a newer nonprofit organization, yes.

And so 501(c)(3) and yeah, just started again in January, so quite new.

- So where is your funding going to come from?

- So our funding comes from a lot of different places right now.

We've been getting sponsorships from local businesses and different community foundations, and then a lot of just fundraising from private donors and people who have been impacted by loss that really want to see this project move forward.

- Now you've said it's all volunteer based, so what does the funding go towards?

- The funding goes towards actually putting on the run, right?

So what that looks like is we have two full size RVs traveling across the state as well as six full size SUVs traveling across the state.

A lot of safety concerns, a lot of safety things.

We have lodging, we have signage, we have stuff we're working with the DOT in North Dakota.

There's a lot of moving parts that are associated with this.

And so a big part of the funding goes towards just making sure that we can make this happen and safely.

- So can you explain what the title of Project Visionary is and what it means?

You're one of them.

So how many visionaries are on the team?

- I'm one of four.

And when we set out to do this, we said, "Are we board members?

That just doesn't fit, you know?

No one feels like a president here.

No one feels like, you know."

And so we just... Since this is truly the inaugural year, this is a vision, right?

We each are coming with a vision for what this looks like and what this event looks like.

And the beauty is that vision can change and it can pivot because we're small enough and able to do that, but hoping to make it big enough that truly it will feel like we're reaching a vision so.

- Now you mentioned South Dakota with, I think you said suicide prevention, but does this event only take place in North Dakota or do other states do things similar besides South Dakota?

- As far as we know, this only takes place in North Dakota.

Yeah.

- Yeah.

So what is the main part of the 10.15 project?

Why, rather, is it a relay run?

I mean, you mentioned somebody likes to run, so why a run?

- Why run?

So yeah, someone likes to run, but also I think running really is a way that a lot of people kind of connect to themselves, right?

I will say I'm not a big runner.

I joke that I do more of a trot, but I think when a lot of people, including some that are lost parents, find ways to connect within themselves and even connect with their children during that quiet time, you know, that pace, that endurance piece.

I think we look at the endurance of a run and associate that a little bit with the endurance of what it takes to navigate grief after loss, right, and to just day by day and step by step carrying that with you and carrying that weight and that grief.

And so really it felt like the running and the distance and the miles and the endurance really went hand in hand with what grief looks like and what it looks like to live after loss.

So that's why.

And then 12, you know, that's realistically from a logistics standpoint, the amount of folks that it might take to do this feat, right?

And then making sure that we have enough spots for people that want to be included, you know.

We have folks that are lost parents on our team.

We have folks that just really believe in the mission and understand.

And so that's kind of where it came from.

Again, I keep going back to the endurance piece and, you know, just carrying those names and those stories all the way across the state.

- Yeah, so you said 12 runners, I believe, but can you tell us who the runners are or who some of the runners are for this year?

- Yeah, we've got great news.

They're all on our website, but we have Mike Greenwood, who is also one of our project visionaries.

He will be running as well as his wife, Heidi Greenwood.

We have a few local people here that are running.

We have Rachel Bakken, who is a nurse at Essentia Health and works with labor and delivery.

So we have Rachel Schultz, who is a local mom who experienced loss and who is a very big runner.

She's such a fun story because I came to her one time at an event and I said, "Hey, we're doing this thing."

This was in May and I said, "Are you, I heard you're a runner, right?"

And she goes, "Yeah."

Well, we're doing this thing.

We want to do 400 and some odd miles across the state.

She goes, "Oh, how many miles for each person?"

I say, "Oh, about 40."

She goes, "That's it."

(Jen laughs) So she's so great and she's one that said, "That's my time to connect with my daughter is when I'm running."

And so it's just sometimes finding the right person is so easy.

And then we did put up an application process for people to sign up to run.

We want them to also have an understanding of what they're getting themselves into, for one, the ability to do the miles and a why that makes sense.

Because I think if you're running in the middle of the night at 2:00 AM and it's dark and you're in the middle of nowhere, you need to be able to kind of touch back into something and say, why the heck am I doing this, right?

What am I doing this for?

And so we need people that have a why and that really care about the mission.

- With that said though, do volunteers need to have that personal connection to participate?

- No, they don't.

And the why is important when you're running, I think.

But for a volunteer, for someone who wants to help out, just having a basic understanding and a bit of empathy is really all that's required, right?

Is to be willing to just say, Hey, this really impacts people in my community, impacts people I know.

Whether I've experienced loss or not, you know, I think I can see the hurt that someone might be feeling and I want to help and that's all it really takes.

- I think I understand there's going to be some stops along the way on the route.

Can you talk about the stops and then the running hours?

You mentioned 2:00 AM.

Are you running 24/7?

- We are running 24/7 We don't stop.

(Jen laughs) So the runners don't stop.

That's a big part of the safety that I mentioned before is making sure that we've got a very tight schedule of shifts.

We've got volunteer drivers, we have volunteer ride along folks, we've got it all, right?

And so as we start in Medora on the 15th, about 10:00 AM Mountain Time, we'll head towards Dickinson and Dickinson will be our first community stop where we'll have an event there.

And it'll be an outdoor event and there will be music there.

There'll be speakers.

The community is welcome.

There's an entire Facebook event page for even just that specific stop.

And then we'll carry on.

If you've heard of the Enchanted Highway, we're gonna go right through there and we'll be stopping in Bismarck as well for a stop and doing a community event there.

And then we'll be stopping in Jamestown.

And then finally we'll be rounding out in West Fargo at The Lights is where our finish line will be.

- Any specific reasons why these spots were chosen or?

- They were good spots along the route for one.

I know, for example, Mike Greenwood's from Jamestown, and so that was a good fit.

You know, we felt like we had a good community there.

Bismarck makes sense because it's the capital, right?

So we really want to make sure that we can touch on that and get support there.

Dickinson was a nice stop, right?

And it's also picturesque.

And these folks in these communities are willing to work with us and willing to take up this cause and celebrate with us.

And so that was a big part of it.

- And what kind of conversations do you hope will start with the project and these stops?

- What I hope will start is you know people, a, number one, why the heck are you guys doing this?

Why are you running this?

And I think the runners can say, "Well, this is my why."

And I hope that as we meet people along the route, we'll say what we're doing.

They say, "Oh my gosh, you know what?

My cousin, my sister, my friend went through loss and I've been looking for some way to find that I can help them and a way that I can connect them with resources or support because I just don't know what to do, right?"

And so we want to make sure that people have resources and that they know that they're not alone.

That's the biggest part.

- Well, I understand Haven Midwest is connected.

How is it connected to this project and what is Haven Midwest?

- So I'm actually the founder and executive director of Haven or Haven Midwest.

And we started back in 2017, actually.

So, we started actually after the death of my son, Henry.

I just felt like there was more that we could do in a community this size in Fargo to support families experiencing loss.

Because at the time, I just didn't realize how many it affects.

It's one in four pregnancies that end in loss.

And I had no idea that number was still that high.

And so I just though to myself, it shouldn't be that hard to get really good, useful resources and comfort support items to these families.

And what started as kind of a little craft project turned into a rather large mission, you know, where we supply healing gifts to families immediately after their loss.

And then we also host different events within our community where those families can connect and talk with other families who just get it and then just find that network of support.

- Jen, what are some of the resources that Haven provides or offers?

- So we always include a few different resource.

I have a library full of books that I reviewed or have been recommended to me.

And so nothing goes in a healing gift that hasn't been either reviewed by me or suggested by another parent.

And so a, number one, a book goes in there, journals, things like that, comfort items, a candle with their baby's name on it if they share that with us, all of these things.

And then we also have a podcast within the organization called Landscape of Loss.

It's a podcast where we share stories of loss and perspectives on surviving grief.

So we want to make sure that that's available to families throughout anywhere that they're at, right?

Because it's not always feasible to get to an in-person event, especially here where we've got a lot of rural communities and we also have weather conditions are always problematic.

So we want to make sure that we can reach those families where they're at, and we do that with a podcast.

- Yeah and again, let's go back to what role do the volunteers play in allowing a nonprofit like Haven, you know, to operate and supply resources?

- Our nonprofit volunteers are huge.

We have a volunteer board of directors, which is great.

They help us with a lot of our event planning and a lot of logistical things.

And then of course, sometimes our healing gift requests are just overwhelming.

And so each one is hand packed and really specific to that family, as specific as we can make it.

So every now and again, we'll get kind of a group of volunteers together to sort of just pack a bunch of those gifts and get them ready to go.

So when the request comes in, we can turn those around as quickly as possible.

- I think you just said you were a founder of Haven, but who are some of the people behind Haven Midwest?

- So like I said, some of our board members, we've got a board chair who's fantastic.

She is a wonderful person.

Her name is Cassie.

And then we have our treasurer.

Her name is Jess Finches, and she's here in the Fargo area and works for Kilbourne Group.

And then of course, we have so many families that we have supported from the beginning.

I think about the very first person that ever received a healing gift from us, she's still one of my closest friends, still comes to every event.

Her husband's on the board.

So what I think is amazing is that the people that I hope that we impact, they turn around and they come and they want to impact other families as well.

And so the families that we serve are really the backbone of the mission.

They're the ones that keep it going and keep making these things possible.

- How do you recommend people approach discussion around difficult topics like pregnancy and infant loss?

- It's hard.

It's hard, and I will say before I lost my son, I also was challenged by that, I was.

And I do wish someone would've just told me then, "You know what?

It's okay to say their name."

They didn't forget that they died.

If you say their name, it reminds them that you remember.

And I think that's the biggest thing you can do, is don't say nothing.

Sort of my platform, I always say, "I'm not over here telling you what not to say," because I don't want to scare people out of saying nothing or anything, right, because they're so worried.

And instead, I think just showing up and saying, "Wow, that's awful.

I'm so sorry."

Saying their person's name, whether it's a child, whether it's a parent, a sibling, a grandparent, anyone that that person loves, saying that person's name means a lot to them.

- So what can people do to support movements like the 10.15 Project and helping grieving families?

- A, number one I think is just sharing.

Sharing the mission and sharing about these events.

If you know someone that has been impacted by this, like, "Hey, there's this event.

You should check it out."

You know, just sending us an email, letting us know that you're interested or that you want to be involved.

I think that's a huge thing.

My other thing about the 10.15 is if you go on our website, all of our runners and their bios are listed there.

Find a runner to love.

Find a runner to love and to find... Maybe they're from your hometown, maybe you have a personal connection with them.

You can read about them.

You can donate to their running page because they're all fundraising for the mission too.

So you can donate to their page is a great way to do it.

If you want your child's name shared across the state, you can send that in too.

- We're out of time.

If people want more information, where can they go?

- The1015project.org.

We also have handles on Instagram and Facebook on the 10.15 Project, and we're at havenmidwest.org.

- Jen, best of luck to you.

- Thank you so much.

- Stay tuned for more.

(lively music) To visit the Plains Art Museum in Fargo, North Dakota is not only a chance to see world-class art, but also to see how an institution works for a community.

By highlighting national, regional, and local artists, the museum constantly strives to showcase diverse exhibitions.

The behind the scenes work to achieve this goal is how the Plains Art Museum can hold the prestige of being the state's only accredited museum and a Smithsonian affiliate.

(lively instrumental music) - We're a destination.

When tourists are coming to North Dakota, they want to come see the art museum because of the work that we're doing and because of the caliber of exhibitions that we put on.

I think that's something that this area should be really proud of, to have an arts museum that's representing among the top tier art museums throughout the country.

Plains Art Museum is the only accredited art museum in the state of North Dakota.

It's also the largest art museum here in the state and became the first Smithsonian affiliate in the state of North Dakota as well.

So we really function and work at that national level and seek to bring high caliber exhibitions here.

Only a small percentage of museums in the United States hold accreditations, so it's a high standard.

It means that we care for our collections, present diverse exhibition portfolio, practice the best financial stewardship.

It's not something you're given in perpetuity.

It's something that you have to maintain and keep, so we're also constantly evaluating our work with those accreditation standards to ensure that we continue to offer a top tier experience.

Plains Art Museum has deep roots here in the region.

It actually started in a former post office building in Moorhead, Minnesota and moved across the river to a current location in downtown Fargo in the 1990s.

The building that we're in, it's a historic building.

It's actually the former International Harvester buildings.

And when it was renovated in the '90s, it was turned into an accredited art museum.

And in the decade since '97, we've really grown to the largest art museum within the state of North Dakota.

We seek to present a diverse exhibition calendar that speaks to everybody from all cultures, all walks of life, really looking to present art that people can connect to and relate with and learn from.

We worked several years out with thinking about what exhibitions we want to present and what's going to have a great impact.

We're always looking to hit on that international, national, and regional level.

Plains Art Museum has had a strong commitment to always having Native American artists and art on view.

It's a major part of our mission.

- I work with indigenous artists.

I work on curating the indigenous exhibits as well as indigenous programming to just promote the indigenous community in Fargo Moorhead.

A lot of the times you see the curatorial departments of other museums broken into perhaps geographic ranges.

So rather than indigenous, it's, you know, the Americas or, you know, Europe, Asia, et cetera.

For my role though, I get to really demonstrate that Native North America is quite large and incredibly diverse, incredibly dynamic.

It's not cut and dry.

It's not this very simplistic, ahistorical bounded objects that we're taught through the school system.

Indigenous America is so much more complex.

One of the great things I get to do is bring artists from around the United States and Canada to Fargo and demonstrate just the sheer diversity and just sheer talent that our population has to offer.

We are trying to provide equitable and equal access to everybody in this community when it comes to curation and the designing of exhibits and really prioritizing how individuals and artists want to be seen and represented because they do have a voice in their own artwork.

- Connecting the community with the art exhibitions, it's a lot of the work that we do, and that work is really focused on the dissemination of information.

It means youth engagement.

It means labels and texts that are interpretive in nature.

We also use something that's referred to as VTS or visual thinking strategies.

That's a newish way of looking at art where you're not necessarily coming at it from an art historical perspective, but you're instead asking questions about how the work relates to your own life experiences and your own foundation of knowledge, and that's a really great entry point for people who haven't studied art.

Through our different facets of work, we seek to really engage with everybody.

You know, we're a museum for the people, we're here for all, and we really seek to be accessible in that regard and just be, you know, a museum where you can come, experience great art and feel like you can understand what you're looking at.

The new permanent collections vault is gonna be a great asset to the community and for the visitor experience.

As of now, nobody has any access to that lowest level.

It's off view for the public, but starting in early 2027, you'll actually be able as a visitor to go down to that lower level, look into the vault and see more of that artwork, and also just see how artwork is stored.

We have over 6,000 works of art that we hold in trust for future generations, and that's been more of the quiet work that we do.

You know, our exhibitions obviously are front and center.

People are aware that we put on shows, but they're not always aware that we steward these works.

So we show maybe between 1% to 5% of the artworks that we hold in trust at any given time, and we really seek to change that with this expansion and opening the vaults.

Then of course, we can continue collecting, which is something we're really eager to do.

We have accessioned over 800 works of art in the last two years alone and are really out of space, and we want to continue to grow our collection, and so this gives us the capacity to do so moving forward.

We're really representing the state of North Dakota on this national stage and sharing our cultural background, our heritages, our interests, you know, what we're working on with that broader audience.

You can come in without that art historical background and leave having learned something new and related to the artwork in a way that's personal and unique to yourself, because art really is for everybody.

(lively instrumental music) - Well, that's all we have on Prairie Pulse this week, and as always, thanks for watching.

(lively music) - [Announcer] Funded by the members of Prairie Public.