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According to the National Council for Mental Well-Being, one third of active duty and reserve military personnel deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan have a mental health condition.

Many experience post-traumatic stress disorder and major depression such that the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs reports that 20 veterans take their own lives on average every day for making him mcqueeney.

>> Taking on such statistics required horsepower, if you will in 2017 make an organized five military veterans and a support team for a 20 mile ride on horseback through New York City and that to lead more veterans to treatment and to highlight the power of horses to reduce the number of suicides through equine therapy and building from that New York City event many have saddled up in the last four years for what is called trail to zero.

>> Good evening.

I'm Bruce Haines Fort Wayne writers take their own 20 mile trail through the city to the Veterans Memorial Shrine and Museum on October 9th and we'll learn more about trail to zero and the healing power of horses on this week's prime time.

We welcome several guests to help tell that story tonight beginning with Allison Wheaten.

She is the executive director of Summit Equestrian Center at Fort Wayne .

Next to Allison is Allen County Commissioner Richard Beck and then next to Rich is Eric Johnson.

>> Second vice commander of the Veterans National Memorial Shrine and Museum and remotely from Illinois from Poplar Grove we have Macon Hill McQueeney who is the president and CEO of Braveheart's Equine Therapy and we welcome you all to this broadcast.

>> It's such a pleasure to have you all here.

And Rich and Eric, let me start with you.

More than 30000 active duty personnel and veterans of the post 9/11 wars have died by suicide.

That's more than the 7000 service members that were killed in those war operations.

When you hear statistics like that in Eric from your military service as well and at the museum in the shrine, what what's your sense of where we are with veterans fighting to be made whole and healed coming out of conflict?

Well, it's a tough subject because when you talk to veterans depending on where they served when they served, everybody has a different take on it.

What they were involved in, what sort of trauma they went through and you know, when when we talk about veterans and helping veterans, you know, at the shrine our motto is no veteran will ever be forgotten.

>> And I think in some respects the veterans have been forgotten and they there's guys out there that need help that aren't getting help and this program has brought to light all number one, the suicides that happened daily which are unbelievable and what we can do about it with the trail to zero and the ride we're going to have October 9th and Fort Wayne rich communities like Fort Wayne , Allen County, northeastern DNA not immune from from an epidemic like that?

>> No, not at all.

I think we have over 20000 veterans in Allen County and I'm sure the number has probably doubled if you took a hundred mile radius around us.

So it is a significant issue and most people just don't realize it is taking place as I talk to people about travel to see your coming here, they're shocked when I tell them that 20 veterans commit suicide every day.

They had no idea.

And so that's why it was so important to get trained to be able to come here to spread their message about their mission and let people know of that that 20 is just an unacceptable number one is an unacceptable number.

>> You know, Erica was not lost on me that even as early as May when the Vietnam War Memorial was erected at the National Shrine and Museum on Odey Road that it was described as a healing wall.

>> Very, very much so.

Bruce , I think for a lot of guys and I know veterans myself who will not come to the wall because it brings too many memories that they they can't deal with.

When we had the dedication there were helicopters out there.

We had to coach a guy to get close enough to the Huey because he was still reflect on his time that had happened 50 years before that.

So you don't know the trauma that was involved.

But the idea is it is a healing wall, Bruce , because I think it gives veterans a place to go .

They can sit, they can reflect it's quiet and it's it's memorable and I think this is important for all vets to come out and see the wall and and have that time of reflection.

>> It seems that healing can occur, if you will, in traditional ways through talk therapy, through medication.

>> The unconvinced and therapies are fascinating and very wide ranging meditation and mindfulness, acupuncture, yoga.

>> Allison, I'll ask you first equine therapy is something you've been involved with out at some equestrian center.

>> What is equine therapy?

Yeah, well equine therapy we can reach all kinds of different people with different challenges and in a way that doesn't feel clinical and it doesn't feel staged.

It's all about connection and doing the physical therapy and the emotional health work and bringing the whole family together to to really make progress towards healing that happens to include horses and make in your work.

You've been in this field since the 1990s and we understand that this had been equine therapy.

That is a mode of recovery and bonding for a number of persons.

There's a very memorable story you share about a child with Down syndrome that really sealed your experience with equine therapy.

>> Can you tell us about that?

Yes, sir.

I I was fortunate to have the opportunity to meet a family that had a young child who had Down's syndrome in the mid 90s, the mid 1990s.

I myself am a congenital amputee.

I was born missing without I was born without my right arm and grew up riding horses and was introduced to a family that had a young child.

He was not walking and not not talking at the time and we were able to get him on a horse alongside of his physical therapist and after his first ride he signed we taught him the word the sign for horse and I think it was after his third ride he began to take his first steps and it was in that those way back then that I was really moved by how much how effective horses could be.

They were extremely motivational for this child who really didn't want to participate in in much therapy at that young age and really enlightened me as far as how much horses had done for me personally in my journey and then fast forward spent much of my career in the late 90s and early two thousands and was introduced to Braveheart in 2010.

I was asked to come judge one of their horse shows and was at that time shown this this idea that Braveheart's had they started in two thousand and seven serving veterans with horses and we had a few I don't know twenty thirty veterans possibly riding at the time but Braveheart's had really paved the way to getting the VA hospitals throughout Chicago to bring veterans to Braveheart's farms because the founder of Bravehearts was a Korean War medic who really believed that the farms personally helped give him a lot of peace and really wanted to share that opportunity with other veterans.

And so we really he and the board and myself really began to think of innovative ways that we could try and reach more veterans with horses.

And I can tell you I cannot tell you the number of individual veterans have told me who have told me not just how much horses have changed their lives but literally saved their lives, how much the farms their lives, how much the farms have done to bring them a whole new place of healing and wellness that they had never before experienced.

>> You say and I love the comment that horses are angels wearing settles.

>> Why?

You know, I have been doing this work.

I have yet to meet a individual that a horse hasn't helped physically, cognitively, emotionally.

I have not seen a situation where horse hasn't intervened and help someone in that moment have a better hour.

Have a better day, have a better month, have a better year.

Have a better experience all together.

But I don't think we've scratched the surface yet scientific as far as what horses are capable of doing you could ask one hundred different veterans Bravehearts why horses work for them and you could potentially get one hundred different answers.

>> They transcend every diagnosis, every challenge.

Horses are brilliant and how they're they're they're designed to read intention and they have a brilliance about how they can pick up someone's energy and take us to a better spot.

It's it's it's really quite exceptional and a lot of people say they would never believe it until they've experienced it.

I'm really proud of the work that organizations like Alison and Braveheart's are doing because a lot of the people that are coming into programs you mentioned earlier as far as unconventional treatments and therapies come to our programs because they say nothing else has worked and to me that's that's something that we we want to stay dedicated to not letting anyone any veteran, anyone that's struggling potentially slip through the cracks.

These are the best men and women our country has to has to offer who have given so much for our freedoms and they come home and struggle with finding their freedom because what they have endured for four of us I don't think that we can do enough as a country to support and to make sure there's enough programs with horses throughout the country for our veterans it is it takes it well let me stay with that point and hopefully our connection will hang in there with us.

I want to ask you about twenty seventeen the inaugural year for trail to zero the idea of an event itself called Trail to zero a 20 mile ride one mile for every veteran lost each day and your your sense of how that was received this is New York City.

>> So clearly it's a big stage for a very, very big event and if you will talk of how trail to zero in twenty seventeen and then I'll have Rich join in as well to to see how that Segway trail to zero twenty twenty one here in Fort Wayne .

>> But let's start with twenty seventeen first I was educated from our veterans in twenty sixteen as far as the staggering amounts that's that we were losing to suicide and we began to talk about what can we do as an organization to try and reach more veterans.

When I first learned the number myself I just thought how how can we allow this in the United States of America?

How how can we how can this be acceptable if this was right if this was 20 NFL football players, if there was if this was twenty US senators a day that we were losing, it would be on the front page of every paper every day and for us to not see this as a as a serious problem as a nation and not do something about it and so our group Bravehearts, a group of veterans and myself decided that we wanted to take a ride and I sent a text out to a bunch of vets saying hey, would you do this?

Would you do this?

Could we could we turn this into something and do twenty miles together and all of a sudden my phone started blowing up with everybody saying let's do it.

And the idea initially that we had was just to ride from we have two farms that Braveheart's in there about ten and a half miles apart and the idea was really we were going to ride from one of our farms to the other and back and sure enough a friend of mine connected me with the NYPD Mounted Police and said hey, why don't you tell them about your idea?

And it just exploded from there where the NYPD mounted said come to our city and let's do it together.

And we did and we have now covered New York City.

We've covered Washington D.C. we've done Houston, we've done Lexington.

We just we've done Chicago.

We just did Chicago just on Saturday with twenty miles and we're super excited to do Fort Wayne this year.

So every year we've been doing these rides in different parts of the country and spreading the mission and making sure that the message gets louder rich it's all been about convergence of bringing resources together and your discovery of trail to zero is is a trail worth telling.

It was probably a little over two years ago I discovered the trail to zero in a period that I subscribe to Western horsemen.

There was an article in there and immediately it catches your attention and the twenty suicide today just slaps you in the face.

And I said I love the mission.

I got to reach out to these folks and I did so and make I started chatting back then about the possibility for coming here later on I then found out that the replica wall was going to be here and the Vietnam veterans had brought that in and I reconnected with Meghan and said does that make any difference?

And the next thing you know, they're in touch with Eric's group and they picked the date of October 9th to come here and we are just so blessed and honored to have them come here with their mission and to spread the word and to get people actively engaged in doing something about because it is an unacceptable situation.

>> We have an image of the trail that you'll be writing and if you will talk about the point of origin and then the the point of dismount.

>> Sure.

Absolutely.

Bruce , thanks to this we're able to come up with a 20 mile ride and we're going to start at the intersection of Emanuel Road and Wayne Trece and we're going to take Wayne Trece up to Tillman Tillman across to Warrior Park at Calhoun Street which is Indiana Tech's athletic facility.

For our first break we'll then go up Calhoun Street to Breckenridge and Breckenridge to Parkview Field for our lunch break at the silver parking lot.

Congress banks will be joining us there for lunch.

The service providers from around the community for veterans will be there with tables and booths set up to offer the services for veterans so that they're aware of what is available to them, what kind of meandered through downtown a little bit for more exposure will come out on you and go Ewing to Wayne Wayne to Calhoun Calhoun down to Main Street, take Main Street out to Lindenwood and Lynwood up to University St. Francis campus for our second break will be on the east campus with a football game going on at that time.

As we walk by we'll stop over at the St. John or the John Paul Pope John Paul, the number two building at Leesburg in spring will then come out spring to Bass Bass to Yellow River and on into day four the shrine for the evening events which will be the veterans putting barbecue together.

I would mention to you that the vice president Pence will be joining the parade at the University of St. Francis and he'll be horse back for the end of the ride.

>> Wow.

That's quite the honor.

Yes.

That's a great pleasure to have him join us and he'll make comments at the end of the trail if I don't ask how the public can feel a part of this with you on October nine, I would be more than remiss how can the public find its way to support in spirit or beyond?

>> Sure, each one of the breaks would be a good place to go to visit what's going on at the Warrior Park, the Silver Park parking lot Park Greenfield University, St. Francis and then at the shrine.

Each one of those locations will be an opportunity for them see the vets talk to them and be a part of what's going on.

>> And Eric, for the shrine to be a lot of activity and still more to see the wall it may was not that long ago when it was officially unveiled.

>> Right.

Twenty ninth of May it's been up.

We've had visitors every day.

It's amazing and no matter what time of day it is Bruce or somebody always at the wall and we're delighted to host this the final end of the trail and have the people from Braveheart's out to the shrine and it's just it'll be a great day and it's October and we're hoping for nice weather and you know, it ought to be a great event and Rich is really helped us and Allison and our whole committee we're on Zoome calls every every other week it seems like.

But the idea is it's coordinated.

>> It's a big effort and a lot of people involved in it should be a great day also.

>> What's it been like for you?

It's just an extension of your your work from the center or the natural complement.

>> Yes, it's it's really it gives great purpose to our veterans program.

So now not only are we getting the skills in and getting the horses trained up and all of that now we have a purpose for what we're training for and and the different things that we need to go through and really it helped to inspire us to to make more of an effort to get equipment that really fits our writers and really fits our horses and and step up our our efforts in that and really it's propelling us to the next level for our veterans program.

So is perfect timing for us for for therapeutic horseback riding.

>> You had an observation I want you to elaborate where you said that as individuals work with horses you start to discover where vulnerability is a strength.

>> Yeah.

Is sort of a juxtaposition isn't it.

Yeah well with the horses because they can read our energy so honestly and they respond to what we're bringing to the table and and we realize that we're not really fooling anybody you know when when we're trying to cover things up and we've got our walls up and that when we allow people in and we allow the horses in and are able to really get an honest connection and an honest relationship that we're stronger for it.

And so to get real time reactions and real time responses from another being and another friend from the horses and then the other veterans, it really just helps us to realize that we're stronger together and we're stronger when we're being honest with ourselves.

>> So yeah.

>> And Megan, in that regard I was fascinated by one medical aspect of it all that the horse and human literally their hearts are in sync as as the therapies continue, as their interactions continue.

I didn't I mean if if something doesn't ELT's does not express the bonding, if you will that goes on I'm not sure what else can I know horses they are just equipped with all kinds of great biofeedback mechanisms, one of which as you mentioned that horses can smell adrenaline and trap it in their nasal cavity and actually because their herd animal they would typically think that with their other herd mates when they're around people then they sink their heart rate with us.

It truly is is amazing what horses are capable of doing in this whole concept of triple to zero is educating the public not only of the crisis that we as a nation are dealing with with losing veterans at an alarming rate ,taking their lives but also letting people know not to give up and to reach out and find a program that has horses like Alyson's or Braveheart's.

There's many programs like these across the country.

We have a national database.

We have hundreds of veterans after each ride to reach out to us or their family members looking how to connect a veteran with a horse.

We're happy to do that.

We also have a transportation grant so we can get veterans to where they need to go to help them out and again trail to zero.

That concept is that we want to ride to get the number from twenty or twenty one or whatever the annual statistic is is not good but we want to ride to get that number all the way down to zero.

>> That's the goal of some equestrian center also involved in activity with with a variety of of individuals with different backgrounds and circumstances.

>> Yes we serve kids and adults and their families and and a wide variety of challenges.

We do physical therapy, emotional health and groups and it's it's amazing how many different people you can reach and what a difference you can make when you partner with horses is we will have into November there is yet another event the folks can find out more about.

We just put the website information up on screen too so hope folks will do it and help stock up.

>> Yes.

Yes, thank you.

And Rich, let me ask you to the future of horse trails in the region.

>> I think this was part of the motivation from the commissioner side of you but you're exactly right.

How are we with all this?

We're in very good shape.

We have identified a couple of hundred acres actually four hundred acres on the east side of the county Adams Center in Paulding Road where we'll be installing horse trails.

We received a grant from the Department of Natural Resources and the county commissioners put in some money as well because we can build about five miles of trails or sixty thousand dollars where we buy we build a conventional trail cost us a million dollars a mile no.

So we think it's a great deal and those we hope to have those open in the next 15 months or so.

>> Absolutely.

And how about a quick review again on some of the basics for the October 9th get together?

>> Well, we'll be starting very early that morning Southeast Fort Wayne making our way across town and I encourage people to either come to the resting points or along the way get out your American flag.

Wish these guys well, welcome them home and I think it's it'll be a great day for veterans and all the residents of Fort Wayne to see this come to town you saw honoring forever Doug that's the Veterans National Memorial Shrine and Museum.

We saw some equestrian center as well.

>> Also the big one Braveheart's trail to zero trail to zero G making Hill McQueeney.

>> Thank you so much for joining us from Illinois.

Best of luck for the coming season.

We so appreciate it.

Alison Wheaten Ridgeback and Eric Johnson, thank you all as well.

And for all of us at prime time, thanks for watching.

Take care and we'll see you again soon.

Thank you