Chad Robichaux is a USMC Force Recon veteran who served our country on eight deployments to Afghanistan in the War on Terror. He is also a former mixed martial arts world champion, a best-selling author and the president and founder of the Mighty Oaks Foundation. His remarkable journey is a testament to his unwavering dedication to serving those in need.
Chad is a widely sought after public speaker and a subject matter expert on PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), who has been featured in such media outlets as Fox News, Forbes and The 700 Club.
Chad Robichaux - PTSD Survivor
His wife, Kathy, is the co-founder of the Mighty Oaks Foundation and serves as Director of Women’s Programs, leading the organization’s ministry to female veterans and service members. It’s possible to overcome challenges, find hope and step into the marriage God intended for you.
Early Life and Military Service
Chad remembers only one childhood dream: to become a Force Recon Marine. He was driven by patriotism, family heritage, and a desire to escape his abusive father, a Marine Corp veteran of the Vietnam War. At 17-years-old, Chad enlisted in the Marines, like so many young men, to avenge the tragic events of 9/11.
As a USMC Force Recon Veteran and DoD Contractor, Chad served eight deployments to Afghanistan as part of a Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) Task Force. Over the course of four years, he would be deployed eight times to Afghanistan as part of the elite Joint Special Operations Command. Robichaux would find himself constantly in the heart of combat. He would witness not just the death of comrades and enemy soldiers, but the evil and cruelty of his enemies who relentlessly tortured and killed innocent civilians.
Read also: The Story of Chad Robichaux
He and his fellow soldiers would be tried by fire in the heat of battle and emerge closer and stronger together. The vulnerability of friendship in battle, however, would lead to emotional devastation, as he buried 15 friends, including his best friend of 10 years.
“It’s hard for that not to shape you,” he said. “Either you grow from it or it crushes you. I think ultimately I grew from it.
That situation took a turn on September 11, 2001. He had already been in the Marines for eight years and was a sergeant in the 3rd Force Reconnaissance Company. He was also married with children. “When I saw those planes fly into those buildings I knew my life was about to be different,” he recalled. “I wanted to go and serve.
The Battle Within: Overcoming PTSD
After eight tours in Afghanistan as a Force Recon Marine, Chad returned to the United States a broken man. The bullets and bombs didn’t break him, but an insidious disorder, “PTSD” that causes fear, flashbacks, and fits of rage, and can ultimately lead to suicide. “I wasn’t a civilized man, I was a savage...It was like an atomic bomb exploded in my soul," says Chad. And he knew the sobering statistics associated with this disorder; three times the number of veterans die by suicide than in combat.
Now officially diagnosed with PTSD, Chad remembers, “One day I was the golden boy of an elite military operation task force and the next I was benched, filled with shame and guilt and fear. Chad knew his pent up rage could explode at any time...and it did. It happened after he witnessed a man who caused a serious traffic accident flee the scene. Chad tracked him down and almost beat the man to death. Then, he exploded into a fit of rage in his own home while celebrating the birthday of his young daughter. Her childlike comment, “I don’t like the icing on the cake” was the catalyst for Chad to launch the cake into the wall. “I knew I was a raging lunatic, and that my wife and kids were afraid of me.”
Read also: More on Chad Robichaux's Work
Chad acknowledges he knew that his condition was serious, but stubbornness, denial, and self deception prevented him from seeking help. Instead he threw himself into dangerous pasttimes, like becoming a world champion boxer. The day of reckoning came when Chad’s wife left him.
He remained silent about his symptoms. He feared his peers would consider him weak and that if he admitted himself into the military’s mental health resources, it would compromise his security clearance and ultimately remove him from special forces. While he struggled with the ever-worsening symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), tragedy struck when one of his teams was captured by the Taliban and killed.
His shelter in Afghanistan was later blown up by a vehicle-borne IED (improvised explosive device) by the same Taliban members. “I kept trying to operate in that environment, but ultimately I had to speak up,” he said.
His wife Kathy and his counselor advised him to get into Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He began competing in the martial art and turned professional. He rose through the MMA ranks and won a world title, ultimately ranking 19th in the world for flyweight and 11th for bantamweight. His success and popularity led him to open a Brazilian jiu-jitsu academy that quickly blossomed to 1,000 students.
“When I got on those mats, it took my mind off of Afghanistan and those bad memories,” he said. “I took something that could be good for me and I dove into it.
Read also: Explore the books of Chad Robichaux
Robichaux said he still suffered from severe panic attacks and continued to struggle with the medicine prescribed by the Veterans Affairs system. His marriage quickly fell apart after an affair.
Alone in a small apartment, Chad remembers, “The reality of the choices I made and the wake of debris left behind overwhelmed me with guilt.” That’s when Chad said he decided that suicide was the only answer. He kept a loaded Glock 22, 40 calibre pistol by his side for several days. Hour after hour, thoughts of his children delayed his demise. Then, he received an unexpected visit from his wife with a challenging question.
She asked Chad why he could fight so hard on the battlefield and in the boxing ring, and not fight for his life and his family. Chad spent weeks in recovery, aided by medication, and a special pastor who mentored him in biblical manhood. He recommitted his life to Jesus Christ, and says that choice changed everything. He says he discovered his purpose for the future was to help other wounded veterans, like himself, on the path to recovery. That’s when “The Mighty Oakes Foundation” was born.
The Mighty Oaks Foundation
After overcoming personal battles with PTSD and nearly becoming a veteran suicide statistic, he founded Mighty Oaks, a leading non-profit serving the military and first responder communities with highly successful faith-based resiliency and recovery programs. Robichaux is the President and Founder of the Mighty Oaks Foundation, a leading military non-profit serving the US Military active duty and veteran communities with highly successful peer-to-peer faith based combat trauma programs and combat resiliency conferences.
That purpose led to a deep burden on his heart to pay it forward, manifesting in the founding of the Mighty Oaks Foundation. This leading non-profit organization has become a beacon of hope, providing faith-based peer led resiliency and recovery programs to military and first responder communities worldwide. Chad and his team are dedicated to helping America’s military warriors and their families suffering from the “unseen wounds” of combat such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Their effort is on the front line to intercede and end the climbing 22 per day veteran suicide rate and the tragic divorce epidemic in military families. To date the program has over 1,000 alumni and has reached tens of thousands active duty service members through resiliency conferences. He has shared his insights and experiences with over 500,000 active-duty troops and led life-saving programs for over 5,000 active military and veterans at Mighty Oaks Ranches nationwide.
Since the organization was launched 12 years ago, Robichaux has spoken to nearly half a million active duty troops. He is only one of two speakers to speak at the Marine Corps boot camps. He has donated approximately 350,000 copies of his books to troops. He has spoken before Congress numerous times in support of faith-based approaches to dealing with PTSD.
His foundation has established five ranch facilities around the country to help veterans suffering from PTSD. Approximately 4,500 have graduated from the program, including active duty military, veterans, first responders, and their spouses. These programs are conducted free of charge, with the number of graduates steadily increasing to about 1,000 per year.
Graduates of the Mighty Oak Foundation’s program are presented with rudis swords.
He has shared his insights and experiences with over 500,000 active-duty troops and led life-saving programs for over 6,500 active military and veterans at Mighty Oaks Ranches nationwide. His expertise in solutions to both resiliency and PTSD is widely recognized, with Chad advising at the highest levels of government such as the former Presidential Administration, Congress, the VA, and the DoD.
Humanitarian Efforts and Rescue Missions
But Chad's compassion and willingness to serve knows no bounds. He is also the Co-Founder of multiple non-profit coalitions and organizations focused on evacuating and recovering Americans and vulnerable people groups. In 2021, Chad notably led the effort to rescue Americans, our allies, and vulnerable individuals stranded during the US withdrawal of Afghanistan.
As the deadline for withdrawal drew near, he formed a coalition of nonprofits called Save Our Allies and created Task Force 6:8, which consisted of twelve former special operations veterans, to evacuate American citizens, green card holders, and special immigration visa (SIV) applicants out of the volatile country. They successfully extracted 12,000 evacuees in a period of ten days and took them to the United Arab Emirates.
Under Chad's leadership, he and his team have successfully evacuated over 17,000 people from the hands of the Taliban. What began as a personal quest to rescue a long-time friend and Afghan interpreter evolved into a full-fledged humanitarian operation.
Following those rescue efforts, Robichaux carried out a two-man reconnaissance mission over the span of ten days that provided flight paths across the border into Tajikistan.
In 2021, he spearheaded the largest civilian evacuation in American history, rescuing over 17,000 people during the Afghanistan withdrawal, including his long-time interpreter and friend, Aziz. His current efforts include leading operations in Ukraine and other high-risk areas globally.
Beyond the Battlefield
Beyond his military career, Chad has dedicated himself to safeguarding our nation as a Special Agent with the US Federal Air Marshal Service. He also lent his expertise to the US State Department, where he served as a Surveillance Detection Senior Program Manager. His actions during an on duty shooting in law enforcement led him to be awarded the Medal of Valor, an acknowledgment of his extraordinary bravery that exceeded the call of duty.
He holds an MBA from the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) and is currently completing a graduate program in nonprofit management at Harvard University, underscoring his dedication to excellence.
Chad is also a former Special Agent, having served with the US Federal Air Marshal Service and the US State Department Surveillance Detection Program.
He has earned an MBA and is a Board Certified Pastoral Counselor with a focus on PTSD. Chad is regularly featured on a wide range of national media and is a Fox News Contributor.
Martial Arts Career
Chad is a former Professional MMA Champion and #6 World Ranked Fighter with an 18-2 professional record, 17 of his wins coming by way of submission. A lifelong martial artist, he holds black belts in multiple disciplines to include a 4th Degree Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under the legendary Carlson Gracie Jr.
At the rank of black belt Chad still competes internationally and has won gold and silver medals at the IBJJF International Open, gold at the IBJJF American Nationals, and bronze at the IBJJF Pan Ams.
On August 21, 2010, Chad Robichaux stood in the middle of the Toyota Center before thousands of cheering fans. He had just finished a fight for Strikeforce, the second-largest mixed martial arts (MMA) organization at the time. The three judges submitted their scorecards. It was a split decision. From the outside looking in, Chad Robichaux seemed to have the world on a string.
Author and Media Presence
Currently, a motion picture movie is being produced based on Chad's award-winning Wall Street Journal best-selling book, Saving Aziz. Chad is also the USA Today best-selling author of A Mission Without Borders, highlighting rescue efforts and humanitarian aid missions he led on ten trips to Ukraine since 2022.
Chad is a bestselling author and has written several books related to overcoming life’s challenges, his humanitarian work and will soon be releasing his first a military thriller fiction series. Through Chad’s work at Mighty Oaks, he has donated over 350,000 copies of his books to military and first responders during his resiliency speaking tours.
Chad's life story was notably shared in a short film by I Am Second, along with a sequel, and is the focus of the documentaries Never Fight Alone, Send Me, and Escape from Afghanistan.
Family and Personal Life
Chad is a devoted Christian and resides in Texas. He and Kathy have two daughters, two sons, and five grandchildren.
Chad and his wife Kathy have been married for 30 years and have two sons, two daughters, and six grandchildren. In the Robichaux family, the legacy of the service runs over 80 years from WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and Afghanistan. Chad's father was the first Marine in the family, followed by Chad and his son's Hunter and Hayden who proudly continued the tradition as 3rd generation Marines, along with sharing Chad's lifelong dedication to martial arts.
Popular articles:
tags: #Chad
