Veterans & Horses: The Unspoken Connection

The Barbra Schulte Show

In this episode, Barb interviews Paul Martinez and Amanda Bethards. Paul is a retired US Army Ranger who served multiple tours in Afghanistan as a sniper. Amanda is a retired Navy medic. Since their return to civilian life, horses have been their lifeline. Barb got to corral them while they were in Fort Worth with BraveHearts for the NYCHA Cutting Shootout. They discuss calmness, trust, authenticity, and honesty with horses. Prepare to be inspired.

Paul Martinez Bio:

SSG(RET) U.S. born and raised in Denver Colorado. Paul was an Airborne Ranger Sniper and deployed 6 times to Afghanistan with 3rd Ranger Battalion. Paul is the author of his combat memoir “When the Killer Man Comes” and is featured in “World of Firearms; Sniper Journal” and is featured in the poetry anthology “In Love &…War” from Dead Reckoning Co., he has appeared on Fox’s hit show American Grit, with John Cena. Paul was introduced to horses while visiting an injured Ranger buddy. As his own injuries began to add up, Paul committed himself to introducing veterans to the healing opportunity of horsemanship nationwide. Currently lives in NY where he advocates for veteran causes and is a co-host of popular Mentors4Military podcast.

Amanda Bethards Bio:

-U.S. Navy Veteran

Amanda joined the Navy after graduating high school. She always knew she wanted to help people and being a Corpsman gave her that opportunity. While working in the medical field, almost 14 years later Amanda and her family were introduced to BraveHearts in 2017. She is forever grateful for the introduction to such a life-changing organization. Amanda is continuing to learn how to manage her stress and anxiety more and more each and every day with the guidance of the amazing therapy horses, BraveHearts team, and her fellow brother and sisters. She is beginning her studies to become a PATH Intl. certified therapeutic riding instructor with the help of BraveHearts.