Broken Arrow Wranglers Foundation had the honor of spending the past six weeks with an incredible group of veterans through our Raising Up Wranglers experience.
Together, we completed six weekly sessions centered around leadership, horsemanship, round pen experiences, authentic community, and reconnecting through horses, teamwork, and mission-focused engagement.
This experience included:
-Round pen leadership and horsemanship encounters
-Veteran peer engagement and community building
-Nervous system regulation and reset through horses and experiential interaction
-Leadership development and mentorship
-Volunteer and ranch operations involvement
-The integration of Bourbon, a 7-year-old bay horse, into the program
One of the most powerful things we continue to experience is that this is not about “serving” veterans from a distance.
This is about coming together with people who have already demonstrated sacrifice, leadership, courage, teamwork, and commitment to something bigger than themselves.
We continually find that the veteran community has some of the most talented, skilled, mission-focused, and team-oriented people we get to work alongside. It is an honor and a privilege to call them fellow WRANGLERS as we work together to strengthen our communities right here at home.
As part of this experience, veterans from this group are now:
-Continuing involvement in ranch projects and operations
-Training to help lead future Raising Up Wranglers sessions
-Supporting expansion efforts to additional ranches and outposts
-Engaging friends and family in the broader Broken Arrow Wranglers community
-Helping support future veterans and students through this growing movement
One participant shared:
“I would tell another veteran to give this a chance, even if it’s outside of your comfort zone. I went into it not knowing anything about horses and had never worked with them before, and it still ended up being a really powerful experience. It’s not just about the horses, it’s about reconnecting with yourself in a calm, supportive environment.”
Another found a way to say it all:
“This place is home.”
Honoring Mike Buchanan
There are some people who don’t just work with horses — they understand what horses reveal about the human spirit. Mike Buchanan is one of those people.
Mike spent years building his craft at Wyoming’s Honor Farm, walking alongside inmates and wild mustangs in a place where authenticity mattered more than words. Through patience, wisdom, and hard-earned experience, he learned how to read the relationship between a horse and a human in a way that is truly rare.
To our crew, Mike is a legend.
His gift goes far beyond horsemanship. Mike has a way of helping people see themselves honestly — to recognize what’s really happening inside, to let go of the masks, and to rediscover the values that shape our relationships at home, at work, and within our own lives. Around a horse, the truth has a way of surfacing, and Mike has spent a lifetime helping people walk through that moment with courage and humility.
We are deeply honored to learn from him and to carry forward the legacy of what he has poured into others. The knowledge, wisdom, and experiences he shares are life-changing for those willing to show up, be honest, and step into the process.
Thank you, Mike, for what you’ve built, what you continue to teach, and for the lives you’ve impacted along the way.
We are grateful to every veteran who showed up honestly and courageously during this experience.
We are also incredibly thankful for the funders, partners, volunteers, ranches, and supporters who made this possible. None of this happens without people willing to step in, contribute, build, plan, mentor, work, and believe in something bigger than themselves.
Funded in part by the Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services as made available through the Arizona Veterans’ Donations Fund.
Additional supporters include Shine His Light, Mike & Karen Buchanan, Broken Arrow Wranglers Foundation, The Brandon House, Javier Herrera, Rocky (Round Pen), Equine Connections, and many others who contributed time, resources, horses, facilities, leadership, and hard work to help make this possible.
The work continues — and so does the community.