Ex-Vice President Pence joins Indiana horse ride for vets

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP): Former Vice President Mike Pence climbed on horseback during an Indiana ride by a veterans group trying to reduce suicides among military veterans.

Pence joined members of the nonprofit organization BraveHearts during a Saturday ride in Fort Wayne aimed at raising awareness about the suicide issue. The national group uses the riding and care of horses in therapy for veterans suffering from depression or other emotional troubles.

Pence rode for part of the route, talked and posed for photos with residents and riders, and spoke during a ceremony at the ride’s conclusion.

The former Indiana governor said he was inspired by the group’s recognition that some veterans have wounds “that can’t be seen with the human eye.”

“They are the burden of the heart and the mind that over generations in America that have really gone on spoken of,” Pence said. “But I’m proud to say now we’re recognizing as a nation the unseen injuries of our heroes.”

About 30 horses and rides followed the full 20-mile route through Fort Wayne — a distance referring to the estimated 20 veterans a day who die from suicide.