Soda’s 52 hours on a Ferris wheel to fulfil a dying wish

Mix 102.3’s Mark ‘Soda’ Soderstrom has pulled off a remarkable feat to help fulfil the final dying wish of Adelaide woman Kerry Briggs.

Kerry, who succumbed to breast cancer in 2016, had three wishes: a tribute garden, her family and friends to run the New York Marathon and the building of a Cancer Wellness Centre.

Her vision has become the focus of the Flinders Foundation. They needed $200,000 for the project to go ahead. 

So, for 52 consecutive hours, Soda rode a Ferris wheel, raising $225,000 and in the process, he set a new Guinness World Record.

He began his marathon effort with on-air partner Jodie Oddy on Wednesday morning. After six hours, Oddy had to stop on medical advice. That left Soda to see the challenge through much to Jodie’s admiration.

“My co-host stubbornness normally drives me nuts but on his occasion, it made him a world record holder and a bit of a hero… cue Mariah Carey! I could not be prouder.”

“Soda and I are so excited to get this wellness centre built. It feels like every second person has been touched by cancer which has resulted in an incredible amount of generosity from our friends of the show.”

Planning for the Cancer Wellness Centre can now progress, fulfilling Kerry’s wish to create a space where cancer patients and their families in South Australia can be supported during the life upheaval of a cancer diagnosis.