Brandon "No Legs" Long
Being able to hunt with other combat veterans is truly a blessing. I quit being a part of organizations for a long time because I didn't want to be paraded around town for people to look at. I got in touch with a combat veteran-only organization to hunt and had a fantastic time with those men, and my family got bigger. It was nice to finally be around other combat veterans and experience that brotherhood again. I spent a lot of time living my life away from the brothers I served with and other veterans as well, but being around them again has genuinely changed my life. I was dealing with a lot of depression and loneliness before I started hunting with other veterans.
I recommend any combat veteran or Gold Star family member to come out for a hunt and experience the bonding firsthand. It was on one of those hunts that I met Brad LeBlanc, and we have been best friends ever since. When he told me that he wanted to offer the same experience to other veterans, I was ecstatic and knew that it would be a great organization. From my experience and what I've heard from other veterans who have attended hunts like this, they go home with not only more friends but more family that they know they can depend on. We might only get into the deployment side of things sometimes, but I know that if I'm having a tough time, I can call anyone I have met, and they will answer.
Having that brotherhood again is essential for many of us veterans. We spend a lot of time and even years with the men we serve with, but when we get out, a lot of us lose that connection. Some, like myself, even feel like they have lost their way, but when you surround yourself with like-minded individuals who all share something in common, those feelings go away. After going on hunts with other combat veterans and Gold Star family members, my life is a lot better now than before.
To anyone considering a hunt with Honor Tribe Outdoors, I HIGHLY recommend it. It could change your life like mine, and I'm eternally thankful for everyone, including Brad LeBlanc.
Charles "Chuck" Armstead
HTO means a lot to me because of the great friendships and camaraderie built over the past few years. It's a place where we can go and be with Vets who understand the trials and tribulations of life after significant injuries. Getting in the outdoors and hunting has been very therapeutic because I can be in nature and relax without the worries of everyday life.
I first met Brad LeBlanc on a fishing trip south of New Orleans, LA. We had a blast, and it was just a natural connection between him and his fellow Vets on the trip. We sat and talked, and he expressed his passion and desire to create an outdoor program to continue to get more vets in the outdoors and from behind closed doors. The conversations we had showed that he was genuine and that he was a man of his word. The time on the ranch once the program came to life was nothing short of what he envisioned, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself the entire weekend. We laughed, joked, and even cried, just sharing experiences past and present.
I am so excited about how HTO is heading while providing Vets with a place to hunt, take home some meat, and, most of all, be amongst people who understand. I took the first buck of my life, which was exhilarating; now I know what it means to have buck fever.
James Jessen
My story and the impact of Honor Tribe Outdoors in my life goes back prior to when HTO was formed.
The mission is the same. HTO (Brad & his family) have been there for me through some of the hardest years of my life. But in those years, healing started on an Antelope hunt in Colorado. During that hunt, I realized it's ok to be broken. It’s ok to forgive myself. It’s ok to leave the past in the past.
When that adventure was over, I was able to realize that healing is a journey. I realized I wasn’t alone in what I thought was my darkest days. I found love, respect, grace and purpose. The seed was planted in My heart and I knew at that moment I found a Tribe. A tribe of people all seeking the same thing… peace.
I love this organization and try to make it as often as I can to the events and there is no greater honor then getting to sit with fellow brothers and sisters and have deep conversation about life, healing, laughing, talking about what personal development we have been doing, what has had the most impact…
The life I have now far exceeds anything I could have ever hoped it could be. I will be forever grateful!
I am an active-duty soldier who has had the pleasure of experiencing what HTO can do for a troubled mind. After losing some brothers in arms over the years I found the hardest to deal with were the ones I lost after the fighting was over. Brad insisted I come to beautiful Texas to see what he has to offer. The great expanses of wildness, nature, and sheer beauty immediately put me at ease. Being able to talk with other vets or simply sit together in a blind without saying a word helped me reflect on my past in a positive light. The focus is hunting and that’s what we did, but more importantly it gave us all something to focus on as we talked or mulled over those we loved and lost. Thank you to Honor Tribe Outdoors and those generous people that make all of it possible.