The Long Road Home Project.

The Long Road Home Project. A 220+ mile horseback journey from Bentonville, Arkansas to the steps of the Arkansas State Capitol in Little Rock for foster care. This is not a protest.
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April2026
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www.TheLongRoadHomeProject.org The Long Road Home is a 200+ mile horseback honor ride across Arkansas—from Bentonville to the steps of the State Capitol in Little Rock—scheduled for April 2026. It is a deliberate act of honor. The ride exists to visibly honor children in foster care, the foster and adoptive families who open their homes, and the frontline case

workers who carry heavy responsibility with limited margin. County by county, riders will move through rural backroads, towns, schools, and churches—bringing visibility and respect to places where foster care is lived, not theorized. The Long Road Home is led by Andrew Martin, founder of Hearts of the Father Outdoor Expeditions, a faith-based nonprofit with over a decade of experience mentoring boys from foster care and hard places. Martin’s leadership is grounded in lived experience, disciplined ex*****on, and long-term advocacy for children and families within the foster care system. The ride is built on preparation and accountability. Horses are protected and rotated. Routes and overnights are planned. Safety, logistics, and partnerships are handled with care. Nothing about this effort is symbolic or accidental. The journey concludes at the Arkansas State Capitol—not as an ending, but as a beginning—delivering community voices, lived experience, and a call to strengthen what already exists within Arkansas’ foster care system.

Thank You, Walmart Home Office.Thank you to Walmart Home Office and its leaders for noticing The Long Road Home Project ...
05/29/2026

Thank You, Walmart Home Office.

Thank you to Walmart Home Office and its leaders for noticing The Long Road Home Project and inviting us to share our journey.

What began as a 220-mile horseback ride across Arkansas became a mission to honor children in foster care and bring their stories to the forefront. It was a ride built on the belief that foster care deserves attention, respect, and action.

To have Walmart recognize that effort and provide a platform to tell that story is both humbling and encouraging.

Thank you for listening, for caring, and for helping shine a light on a cause that matters.

We are honored and grateful.

For Honor. For Foster Care.

05/27/2026

The Long Road Home was never just about a horseback ride.

It was about putting foster care front and center across Arkansas.

Over 220+ miles, we crossed counties, met families, carried stories, honored children in care, and reminded people that these boys and girls are not invisible.

But here’s the truth:

The ride may be over…until next year
the mission is not.

The Long Road Home was powered by The Hearts of the Father Outdoor Expeditions (HOTF) — an organization that has spent over 11 years serving boys from foster care and hard places through outdoor mentorship, camps, life skills, and brotherhood.

Campfires.
Fishing poles.
Horseback riding.
Hard work.
Mentorship.
Healing.
Purpose.

That’s the heartbeat behind the ride.

As we move into summer and the next chapter of this mission, we’d love for you to stay connected with the work happening beyond the trail.

Follow The Hearts of The Father Outdoor Expeditions
www.theheartsofthefather.org and continue following the journey, upcoming camps, mentorship opportunities, and the future vision ahead.

The road continues.

05/11/2026

Monday Check -In

Where were you when you saw us?

Check out TheHeartsoftheFather.org
05/06/2026

Check out TheHeartsoftheFather.org

THE LONG ROAD HOME PROJECT — POST WRAP UP. If you’ve been watching this from the beginning… then you know—this was never...
04/30/2026

THE LONG ROAD HOME PROJECT — POST WRAP UP.

If you’ve been watching this from the beginning… then you know—this was never just a ride.

I’m sitting here on the other side of it, and the only word that keeps coming to me is this:

Grateful.

Deeply. Fully. Overwhelmingly grateful.

It all started Under the Same Sky at The Wishing Willow Wedding Venue in Bentonville.

That night… I didn’t know exactly how this was all going to come together. But I knew it mattered. I knew the stories mattered. And I knew foster care deserved more than being an afterthought.

To everyone who showed up, who gave, who believed—thank you. That night lit the fire.

Then we stepped out of Bentonville… and we rode.

And what happened over those miles… I’ll carry for the rest of my life.

We didn’t just travel—we carried something.

1,634 children in foster care across the counties we rode through.
That number stopped being a number real quick. It became faces. Stories. Moments I’ll never forget.

We saw kids light up.
We saw young men in detention lean in and listen.
We saw a foster mom standing strong with five kids she chose—over and over again.
We saw an elderly woman come alive again with a horse resting its head in her lap.

We saw people who didn’t know anything about this mission… become part of it.

And I just kept thinking—Lord, thank you for letting me be a part of this.Thank You for Protecting Us and Providing right when we needed it

To the Legacy Riders—(who rode the whole 220 miles)

Leo Nash
Brooks Owens
Phil Burke
Taylor Jones
Allyonna
Livvy

You didn’t just ride with me—you carried this with me.
The long days. The unseen moments. The weight.

I’m forever grateful.

--To our Trail Bosses—
Hailee Mason
Katie Lee
LaKimbra Baldwin
Mary Lawrence
Jessica Sullivan
Melissa Cowper-Smith

You held this whole thing together.
Strong. Steady. Unshaken.

From the bottom of my heart—thank you.

--To law enforcement across Arkansas—

Arkansas State Troopers—especially Trooper Adrienne Belcher (WarHammer)
Bentonville Poilce
Capitol Police
Little Rock Police
Russellville Police
Every local department along the way

You didn’t just es**rt us—you covered us.
You honored this mission, and I will never forget it.

--To every person who brought food, water, supplies, encouragement—

You might’ve thought it was small.
It wasn’t.

You kept us going. You reminded us we weren’t alone.

Thank you.

--To Bhavinkumar & Karishma Patel—

You showed up as strangers… and left as family.

The food. The encouragement. The hotel.
Your generosity came at the right time in the right way.

I’m beyond grateful for you.

--To our partners—

Big V Feeds —thank you for taking care of our horses every step of the way
Feed & tack stores along the route—thank you for stepping in
Cavender's —thank you for backing this mission
Flint Creek Youth Ranch —thank you for the horses and for trusting us

--To Brentt Tumey & Saving Children and Reviving Souls (SCARS)—

Thank you for believing in this when it was just a vision.
Thank you for standing with us.

And then… we rolled into Little Rock.

We rode to the Capitol steps carrying stories that don’t always get heard…
and we placed them directly into the hands of leaders.

That moment… I’ll never forget.

Because it meant this—

Foster care is no longer “oh by the way.”

Not after this.

I’m grateful.
For every rider.
Every supporter.
Every mile.
Every moment.

This changed me.

But hear me…

--This is only the beginning.--

This is Chapter 1.

We didn’t ride all that way just to finish—
we rode to start something.

To take foster care from the background…
and bring it front and center where it belongs.

And we’re not done.
Not even close.

From my heart—

Thank you for riding with us.
Thank you for believing.
Thank you for standing in this with us.

For Honor.For Foster Care.

04/30/2026

Excited to showcase the next phase of The Long Road Home Project.



Honor PostAlix. (She’s got one of those long names where it feels like they ran out of vowels and consonants halfway thr...
04/29/2026

Honor Post

Alix. (She’s got one of those long names where it feels like they ran out of vowels and consonants halfway through.)

Alix is the whole reason The Long Road Home felt real to people. We partnered with her company The Social Bit Photography, and in the words of Beyoncé, “She upgraded us.” The photos, the website, the SEO, the logo, the storytelling, the marketing—it was her. I’m at a loss for words when it comes to her. She was on that very first Zoom call when all I had was a vision. While most people on that call low-key laughed and thought it was a joke, Alix leaned in and started asking real questions. Honest questions. The kind that made me open up and actually listen.

She didn’t just help—she invested herself into this mission. Her creativity, her eye, her ex*****on… it’s next level. I’m blown away by her work.

She’s a SHE-RO. She’s celebrated. She’s honored. She’s appreciated.
And she’s the dopest mom to three raw, rugged boys.

Thank you, Alix. 🙏💪

StoryTime: Enter the Patels — Bhavinkumar and KarishmaThe first time I met them was at the Camp Robinson rest area outsi...
04/26/2026

StoryTime: Enter the Patels — Bhavinkumar and Karishma

The first time I met them was at the Camp Robinson rest area outside Mayflower,Arkansas . That was our final leg before heading to the Capitol—and some much-needed R&R. They came by to greet us and see the horses. I had been taking a power nap, and when I woke up, they were already there.

We started talking casually, and it quickly turned into a joyful conversation. They shared that in their Hindu faith, horses are highly respected—and if seven horses are coming toward you, it’s a good sign. I told B, “Well, you’re gonna have to help me line these bad boys up side by side.” He laughed.

The next day, they came back and dropped off carrots and apples—but I missed them.

On the third day, I had planned to bless all the riders with a hotel night—showers and a good night’s rest. But everything was running behind. We were packing, breaking in a new horse, and I had to run a few riders to Cavender’s for last-minute gear. I got back to camp and started inhaling dinner so I could get everyone to a Days Inn. It was already 4 PM, and I was moving fast.

Then the Patels pulled up.

They came to drop off snacks. I greeted them and told them we were in a bit of a rush trying to get rooms for the riders. Bhavinkumar and Karishma calmly said, “Oh… we own a hotel.”

I hit them with my best Gary Coleman voice: “Whatchu talkin’ about, Willis?”

They smiled and said, “Yeah, if you want, you guys can come use ours—for free.”

Man… I almost fell out of my boots.

I couldn’t pack fast enough. We loaded up and headed over, and let me tell you—their place had the COLDEST A/C I’d felt in days. I slept like a baby until 2:30 AM, woke up, and hit the Waffle House next door.

Skyline Inn — thank you.

Huge gratitude.

You never know who God sends into your path—knowingly or unknowingly—to bless what’s ahead of you.

🥰 The Patels

This is Love. For Honor. For Foster Care. For the Future.
04/23/2026

This is Love.

For Honor. For Foster Care. For the Future.

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Little Rock, AR

Telephone

+12819890112

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