Local teen Austin Lund recently went on an adventure with the AO1 Mountain Movers. The Mountain Movers program is one of the Carson Wentz AO1 foundations Outdoor Ministries, which provide once-in-a-lifetime hunting, fishing, or other outdoor experiences for children with life-threatening illnesses or other life-altering medical situations. These children are taught the ethical practices behind harvesting and consuming wild game. As part of each adventure, children are mentored in the Gospel through small group discussions, and the solitude allows them to grow closer to God. Other benefits gained through this program include increased physical health through exercise, lowered anxiety, and restored focus.
Carson Wentz started the AO1 foundation in 2017, and it currently has three ministries: The Kingdom Crumb, The Outdoor Ministry, and the Haiti Sports Complex. Since its inception, Mountain Movers’ adventures have taken place in more than 15 states. Children have gone camping and hiking, fished for walleyes, musky, and halibut, and hunted waterfowl, pheasants, elk, deer, antelope, and bear.
Jana Hodgson, from Highland Elementary, referred Lund last year to the Carson Wentz AO1 foundation. “Carson Wentz, he’s an NFL football player, a backup quarterback for the Chiefs,” says Lund. “He is the one that started all of this.” Hodgson has been an important pillar in Lund’s life since he started at Highland Elementary. “I am a Type 1 Diabetic, and she helped me with all my Diabetes stuff as well as the other nurses there too,” says Lund. “But, she was the one who helped me the most.”
Lund, now a sophomore at Red Lake Falls High School and the son of Brian and Ashley Rystad of Crookston, was chosen for this once-in-a-lifetime outdoor hunting experience in Musselshell, MT, to shoot a cow elk. Lund left with Cole Scherbenske, the Outdoor Ministry Director, for the Carson Wentz AO1 foundation on December 12, 2024. They traveled from Fargo, ND, to Musselshell, MT, where Lund shot an Elk. He came home on December 15, 2024, with all the processed meat. “We all met up in Fargo, ND, and we all took a truck out there,” says Lund. “We brought back over 200 lbs. of Elk.”
This foundation is uplifting individuals and communities around the world by demonstrating God’s love for his people. Lund definitely felt uplifted after his trip. “This was probably one of the best experiences I have had in my life and probably will ever have in my life,” says Lund. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Lund wants to thank Jana Hodgson from Highland Elementary. Without her referral, he would have never had this amazing opportunity. He wants to thank Tyler Ferris of Western Hunt Co., who helped him shoot his elk, and he also wants to thank Carson Wentz and all the staff and individuals who donate to such an amazing foundation, including Cole Scherbenske. “I want to thank Cole; he was the one who took us out there, and he was the head of the outdoor ministry,” says Lund. “I can’t thank him enough.”
