Wyoming Man Is Changing Veterans Lives With Antler Art

Ben Barto, a Wyoming native, took a hobby and turned it into not only a profitable business but he is helping veterans every day.

Ben has always had a fascination with hand carving antlers.  In 1974 he took his hobby and started wholesaling his product to Cabela's.  He met his now wife Sherry and they started to grow the business by making magnets, Christmas ornaments, and knives, which helped their merchandise to be sold at Bass Pro Shops, Sportsman's Warehouse, Gander Mountain, Ace Hardware and gift shops across the nation.

2014 was a very inspirational year for Ben personally and on a business level as well.  Ben was at a Green Beret Foundation event and witnessed, Dana Bowman, a double amputee skydive into the event and later found out re-enlisted in the military.  After that, all Ben's efforts have gone towards helping veterans.  In 2016 he started Horns for Heroes.

Folks can bring their unwanted antlers to their local American Legion Post where there are a sanctioned Horns for Heroes buyer who will buy the antlers and write a check to the post. 85% of the profit goes to veterans across the country and the other 15% is for shipping and handling.  Mr. Barto hires Wyoming veterans to help build a various amount of art pieces.

"A football injury my senior year kept me from being drafted," Ben told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. "Because I wasn't a veteran, and I should have been, hearing some of the struggles was enough to motivate me.  We have donated hundreds of knives and thousands of dollars to veterans and developed a line of fundraiser products for all Legions and VFW's."

To learn more about, visit hornsforheroes.com.