Welcome Home Horseback Ride Across America

I am a retired Special Forces Colonel with over 33 years of service.  Following my retirement in July 2014, my wife and I bought our piece of paradise.  Our 25-acre horse ranch in Liberty, North Carolina. 

Since retiring from the Army, we have been coordinating a Wounded Warrior Project event, which is a horseback ride from the East Coast to the West Coast.  The Welcome Home Ride Across America is in tribute to all the War on Terrorism Veterans that have sacrificed and continue to struggle since returning home.  We will begin March 12, 2016 starting from US Marine Corps base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and plan to finish by November 2016 along the Oregon Coast. Along the way I plan to ride with equine (horse) programs supporting our wounded veterans and raise funds through continued awareness for support of the Wounded Warrior Project.

We are asking your support in raising over $100,000 for those Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and their families that have sacrificed so much for us all.  You can make donations at https://support.woundedwarriorproject.org/individual-fundraising/Welcome Home Ride Across America.

We will use four horses for this cross-country event covering between 20 to 30 miles a day.  The plan is to ride one horse and use another as a packhorse switching out the horse pair every three to five days.  The route will take us from North Carolina through Tennessee, Missouri, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho and finish along the Oregon coast.  You can follow our daily progress beginning March 12, 2016 on Twitter@WelcomeHomeRide, Instagram@rideacrossamerica or http://rideacrossamerica.wix.com/chappell.

Your support is greatly appreciated with horse feed, shoeing, veterinarian care, boarding and travel cost.  We are anticipating that the cost of this event will exceed  $10,000 dollars and any excess funds will go to the Wounded Warrior Project. You can support this event at https://www.gofundme.com/s6g8daf7