MIDDLETON, Wis. — A Middleton youth minister taking it upon himself to find a unique way to encourage and motivate teens during this difficult time, all while bringing awareness to mental health.

St. Luke’s Lutheran church's Jay Kiel created the 10 for 10 challenge.  He is running 10 miles a day for 10 days straight starting October 1st.  

He is asking teens all across the state to do something deliberate, powerful and positive for that time frame.

"We’re not really doing enough to know that it's okay to talk about mental health and breaking down the stigma is super important,"  Kiel said.  Unbeknownst to the church leader, his idea coincided with a critical week.  

"I chose the date, basically because it worked on the church calendar, it fit with school kicking off and youth knowing that they're not alone,  and then I found out National Mental Health Awareness Week is October 4th- 10th," he said.

So while Kiel runs, others plan to read one self-help book cover to cover each day.  A particular challenge he likes involves letter writing.

"There's a member of our church that's going to write 10 letters to 10 different people in 10 days, and she specifically wants to make sure that a majority of them are youth from our church and community because she wants to know that someone cares for them. She wants to know that someone was willing to hand write a letter to let them know that they matter,"  he said.

During the event, Kiel plans on offering special video segments with features on various mental health topics ranging from self-care to relationships.  You can learn more, here.