Flags, servicemen and -women, friendly competition, and patriotic pride enveloped the Will Rogers Coliseum June 24 for the inaugural Honoring Freedom Night. The community-wide celebration took place at the 2026 APHA World Championship Show in Fort Worth, Texas. It was jointly produced by the American Paint Horse Foundation, the National Snaffle Bit Association Foundation, Two Ravens Foundation and Airpower Foundation.
Fort Worth native and U.S. Navy serviceman Kevin Fahlund presented America’s Freedom Bell, crafted from materials recovered from the World Trade Center in tribute to America’s armed forces and the enduring ideals of freedom. Corporal Don Graves, a 101-year-old U.S. Marine veteran who fought in World War II, sang God Bless America and helped ring America’s Freedom Bell with Kevin. Two veteran-focused equestrian competitions, the Heroes on Horses Walk-Jog Western Pleasure and the Two Ravens Foundation Veterans Slide reining event, crowned champions during Honoring Freedom Night. The event capped off with a concert by Scooter Brown Band.
“Sitting at the back gate, listening to what this moment meant to our veteran riders and watching a vision come to life, was truly incredible,” American Paint Horse Foundation Director Betsy Budge said. “This event transformed into a place where our veterans were honored for their sacrifice, celebrated for their resilience and given the opportunity to perform on a world-class stage. That is the true power of the human-horse connection.”
Healing Through Horses
Courtney Phillips of Paradise, Texas, competed in Heroes on Horses in 2025, and she returned as a Two Ravens Veterans Slide competitor this year. The networking extended to veterans through programs like Honoring Freedom Night has been impactful, she says.
“It’s given us more of a community where it’s easier to reach out and have friends that have so many shared experiences. That means a lot.”
As a chief warrant officer for the U.S. Army, Courtney (pictured at top) flew AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopters and completed two deployments to Afghanistan before medically retiring after 11 years of service. Connection to her horses, including Paints like Hes Foxy, has helped Courtney persevere through challenges.
“Since retiring from the military, I’ve done best when I’ve stayed closest with my horses. When I let that bond slip piece by piece—maybe because I have a million excuses at the time, or my seizures just got too bad—that’s where I start to slip and I lose a big piece of who I am,” Courtney said. “The bond with horses means everything. They are truly a gift from God, a gift from Jesus himself to help us heal.”
In addition to earning reserve champion team honors in the Veterans Slide at part of Lipps Strike Team, Courtney was honored as the namesake of a limited-edition design for Cuttin Up Saddle Blankets, which will benefit the American Paint Horse Foundation.
“Events like this are sometimes what we need to compel us to get back out to the barn and rekindle that relationship with the horse,” Courtney said. “Events like this help us remember to keep striving, to keep getting out there and work on our relationships.”
Heroes On Horses Walk-Jog Western Pleasure
Champion: Dawn Parker, Petersburg, Virginia, & Well Made
Reserve: Scott Godwin, Flower Mound, Texas, & Always Certain
After watching the APHF/NSBA Heroes on Horses in previous years, Dawn Parker knew she wanted to be involved with the competition in 2026. She jogged into the arena aboard her daughter’s horse, “Romeo,” a 2020 chestnut overo gelding.
“Walk-jog should be straightforward, but it still gets me nervous,” Dawn said. “[Romeo’s] such a great boy. He listens and gives me 100 percent every time.”
With Romeo steadying her nerves, Dawn remained composed and stoic during the finals and delivered a smooth performance. Still, she was surprised to be the last rider standing in the arena during reverse-order placings, netting her the champion’s buckle. Even more meaningful for Dawn was the camaraderie she experienced throughout the Honoring Freedom Night celebration.
“It really hit me when I walked in,” she said. “I had some physical challenges that made me doubt whether I would be able to ride again. It brings me such joy to be able to focus on something: a goal to work toward, becoming a team and competing, and seeing what you, individually, are able to accomplish. It’s great to see those people who want to support you throughout all of that.”
Dawn joined the Army at age 22, where she served for nine years as an intelligence analyst. She left the military to have her daughter, Delany; her husband still serves.
When military service ends, the loss of that community can hit hard, Dawn says.
“After the service, it feels like it’s slipped away from you,” she said. “It can be hard to find that ground where you can continue to gain, where you find purpose. These events feel like you’re still important, like the things you’re doing are important. It might be a slow process to be able to get back to it or to start [riding], but in the end, you can go as far as you want to push it.”
Two Ravens Foundation Veterans Slide
Individual Champion: Jason Dolce
Champion Team: Mathison Vanguard—Ryen Overlin, Jason Dolce & coach Gunny Mathison
Reserve Champion Team: Lipps Strike Team—Shawn Day, Courtney Phillips & coach Jeromy Lipps
Bronze Champion Team: Tishman Command—Halley Ferron, Derek Bibby & coach Josh Tishman
In true military and cowboy spirit, Jason Dolce is always ready answer the call when help is needed. He competed in last year’s Two Ravens Foundation Veterans Slide, but found himself in the saddle once again as a last-minute rider replacement.
“I was supposed to be a mentor, but one of the competitors got hurt and couldn’t make it down. So I ended up competing this year again, which was not what I planned on doing.”
Decked out in his bull-riding chaps—the result of a bet between Jason and Two Ravens Founder Reed Knutson—Jason galloped into the Will Rogers Coliseum with bravado.
“The horse that I’ve been riding, he gets amped up pretty good, just like me,” Jason said. “I had to keep myself in check and keep him in check. It was amazing. I could feel he was like, ‘Oh man, I’ve got you.’ ”
Though pleased with his run, Jason immediately started dissecting what he could have done better, replaying his previous lessons with trainer Gunny Mathison.
“It’s probably the military training in me,” Jason laughed. “I was like, ‘I could have done better.’ My mind was already thinking about what I needed to work on down the road.”
When the dust settled, Jason walked away with not one, but two championship buckles. Team Mathison Vanguard—composed of Jason, fellow rider Ryen Overlin and trainer Gunny Mathison—won the team championship. Jason scored the high-point individual buckle, too.
Now retired after serving 20 years as a U.S. Army Green Beret, Jason helps support wounded, ill and injured soldiers through the Department of Defense. While the “band of brothers” mentality came standard during his service, Jason was surprised to find the same close-knit network in the reining community. Jason developed such a deep friendship with Gunny that he and his wife, Amy, decided to move to Texas.
“Everybody’s family,” Jason said. “Everybody takes care of each other. They’ll do anything for you. It’s amazing. You can’t ask for better people. What I really like about this event is that it builds connections.”
Drawing on both his personal story and those he’s connected with in life after service, Jason understands how camaraderie and support can impact long-term healing, whether that trauma was physical, mental or emotional.
“The hardest thing I see is that they don’t know how to ask for help. Somebody has got to get that push—kind of walk them through that and get them past that barrier. You find out there are people who want to understand me and help me. What I felt through this whole thing is that everybody just wants to help. Everybody struggles. Everybody has a story. But understand that you’re not alone.”
Lasting Impact
Another returning participant was Purple Heart combat wounded veteran Jason Sedotal of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Jason was new to the sport of reining last year, when he competed in the Two Ravens Veterans Slide as part of Team Deary. He returned this year as a mentor for the team. Bonded through shared experiences and the healing power of horses, Jason found a family that extended beyond blood and returned home inspired to make a difference.
“I went home and had this vision in my head that I wanted to do this in Baton Rouge,” he said. “We started Barnside Brotherhood in November of last year; we’ve had 109 veterans through our gate. It’s been truly life-changing for me and life-changing for a lot of other veterans in Louisiana. And it all started right here at the show with the Two Ravens Foundation last year.”
Jason found himself taken under the win of National Reining Horse Association $6 Million Rider Casey Deary and the other coaches who donated their time as part of the Veterans Slide.
“I’m just learning as I go, but Casey and Nathan [Piper] are a phone call away. These guys have embraced us,” Jason said.
In April 2026, Jason and Barnside Brotherhood were given a 2-year-old colt by Down Right Amazing, a Paint stallion that made history last year as the first horse to ever cross the Million Dollar Earner threshold. The horse—which Jason emphasizes is a gift to all of the veterans in his program—was made possible by Casey and the colt’s owner, Debbie Good. Speechless at their generosity, Jason’s passion to help veterans through equine empowerment burns stronger than ever.
“The horses did a lot for me in the beginning, and watching veterans grow and gain from it is doing even more,” Jason said. “I say it all the time, if it saves one life, it’s all worth it.”
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