Our inspiration for starting Hunter's Heroes came from our son, Hunter Wells. He was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia just after his 4th birthday. November 6th, 2020 would be a day that changed the course of our lives forever. He went from a typical 4 year old to a hero overnight. He faced all the adversities associated with cancer with courage and dignity. He made us proud every single day. In 4 years time, Hunter received over 150 doses of chemo, radiation, and 2 grueling stem cell transplants which left him with graft versus host disease. Hunter beat cancer twice, but the effects of the treatment were just too great. On December 7th, 2024 Hunter passed away. He was a true warrior up until the very end.

Hunter wanted to be a cowboy and a soldier when he grew up. He spent his last birthday with his twin sister in the hospital at Cook Children's. His favorite gift was an Army uniform. I shared that photo on his Facebook page, and then magic happened. Over night, his post had been shared with hundreds of thousands of people and our little soldier became a hot topic with the armed forces. We began receiving messages, letters, and packages from all over the world encouraging Hunter. We also received letters informing us how Hunter was bringing people together and helping struggling soldiers with their own personal battles. We were always proud of our son, but to know he was inspiring others with his journey made us even more so. Hunter was honorarily commissioned as a Captain in the United States Army. He was able to have a big ceremony with service members from multiple branches in attendance. He would later be honored with a military burial that included a draped coffin and a 21 gun salute.

In his 8 short years, Hunter created a legacy. One we will carry on for generations to come. This organization will continue to partner with service members to help the tiniest heroes and their families fight big battles.