Our
Journey
BHAWK, short for Brad Halling American Whiskey Ko., marks the foundation for Brad Halling’s personal life story of Gratitude and recognizes the extraordinary men he served with in the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu. After surviving the battle, later memorialized by Hollywood in the movie Black Hawk Down, Brad was given a second chance at life. Now Brad’s vision is to honor the giants he walked amongst and to express Gratitude to all those who’ve served our Nation and our communities.
Joined by his wife, Jess, Brad is bringing his vision to life. After the Hallings’ combined 49 years in the U.S. Army serving alongside our Nation’s remarkable servicemembers, expressing Gratitude for Extraordinary Service through BHAWK and its premium brands is a second calling for Brad and Jess Halling.
Brad Halling prior to the battle on Oct 3, 1993.
Both born and raised in the midwest, the Hallings have long called the Fort Bragg, North Carolina area their home. Active participants in veterans’ charities and long-time whiskey and wine enthusiasts, the Hallings purchased and began shaping 175 Yadkin Road, Southern Pines, North Carolina in early 2020 with a vision of creating two premium brands and an immersive distillery experience for whiskey lovers, local residents, tourists, and the surrounding military community. Brad and Jess invite you to Raise the American Spirit with them at the BHAWK distillery campus.
Sergeant Major, U.S. Army, Retired
Brad’s Special Forces career began in 1983 in the 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) where he deployed to Honduras as part of a group of military advisors in support of a now-declassified military and paramilitary operation.
From 1984-1987, Brad served in 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Operational Detachment 62, where the Group’s operational area of focus was the then Eastern Block, with Brad’s team’s focus on Poland.
In 1987, Brad served in the Physical Security Support Element – Berlin, prior to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the re-unification of Germany. PSSE was a cover name for the 410th Special Forces Detachment and successor to “Detachment A” which operated in Berlin from 1956-1984. PSSE was a small special forces organization tasked with clandestine unconventional warfare and counter-terrorism, including a stay-behind mission in the event of a Soviet invasion. In 2014, both Detachment A and PSSE-Berlin were declassified by U.S. Army Special Operations Command.
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In 1990, Brad transitioned to U.S. Army Special Operations Command. He deployed to Somalia as part of Task Force Ranger and fought in the Battle of Mogadishu, later depicted by Hollywood in the movie Black Hawk Down. While fighting in what arguably remains the longest sustained firefight since Vietnam, Brad was wounded when a rocket propelled grenade struck his helicopter, call sign Super 62, and amputated his left leg above the knee.
Brad became the first above-knee amputee to remain on active duty through full Army retirement. He returned to work, remained operational and on airborne status, engaged in SCUBA training and silently paved the way for amputees across the services to participate in what is known today as the Continuation on Active-Duty program. Brad was also one of the first Americans to wear the revolutionary “bionic knee.”
After retirement in 2000, Brad completed a graduate program at the University of Connecticut to become a Certified Prosthetist. While working in a prosthetic clinic in Long Island on 9/11, he felt called to return to Fort Bragg. By 2003, Brad returned to U.S. Army Special Operations Command to train Soldiers where he continued to serve until founding BHAWK.
Brad is referenced in books like Black Hawk Down, Battle of Mogadishu, Modern American Snipers, Day of the Rangers, and others. READ LESS
Colonel, U.S. Army, Retired
Jess enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve in 1991 as a Russian Linguist and Interrogator while attending college at the University of Minnesota and law school at Hamline University School of Law. She graduated from the Russian Language program at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California and Interrogator Training at Fort Huachuca, Arizona.
Jess entered active duty and was commissioned as an Army Judge Advocate in 1998. Jess’ regular Army military assignments included the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Kentucky; Trial Defense Counsel, Yongsan, Korea; Judge Advocate, Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, Hawaii; Rear-Detachment Staff Judge Advocate, 82d AirborneDivision, Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Deputy Staff Judge Advocate, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, Fort Eustis, Virginia; and Command Judge Advocate, NATO Land Command, Izmir, Turkey.
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Among other career highlights, Jess also served as a Senior Legal Advisor in U.S. Army Special Operations Command and for the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) Fort Campbell, Kentucky. She culminated her career as the Staff Judge Advocate for Joint Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, serving a total of eight years as the principal legal advisor in these Special Operations Units with an emphasis on national security law. Jess also served as the principal legal advisor for several deployed Joint Task Forces.
Jess has served on multiple deployments to Iraq, Jordan, Turkey, Korea, and other locations. Jess has managed multiple legal teams and served as Senior Legal Advisor to seven senior military commanders. She is a graduate of Airborne School, Air Assault School, and Survival, Escape, Resistance, Evasion (SERE). Jess currently serves as the General Counsel to Horizon3.AI, a Silicon Valley cybersecurity start-up that proudly employs Special Operations Veterans. READ LESS
* These unit logos reflect commands we proudly served in during our careers. We’ll strive to make their members and Veterans proud. The appearance of DoD visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.
Expressing
Through Our Tribute Series And Gratitude Room
Sergeant’s Valor Gratitude is a tribute series of super-premium bourbons focused on honoring extraordinary service. the story behind each batch will be featured in our gratitude room, a living museum at the heart of the BHAWK distillery campus. as new batches honoring extraordinary service are introduced, the gratitude room’s living museum will update to reflect the story that inspires each tribute.
Batch one is “to the crew of Super 62,” honoring the special operations aviation crew who delivered brad from the battlefield on October 3, 1993.
Board of Directors
Sergeant Major,
U.S. Army (Retired)
Co-Founder, CEO, Brad Halling American Whiskey Ko.
“Both worthy and doable, with people I want to work with. BHAWK vision realized will honor commitment, changes lives, and be good for my Grandkids.”
Architect and Designer, TAG Studio LLC
Co-Founder and President Emeritus, Smooth Ambler Spirits, Inc.
Co-Founder, West Virginia Great Barrel Company
Architect and Designer, TAG Studio LLC
Co-Founder and President Emeritus, Smooth Ambler Spirits, Inc.
Co-Founder, West Virginia Great Barrel Company
TAG founded and is the Master Design conceptualist of TAG Studio in West Virginia, a family of resort design professionals. TAG Studio has garnered wide acclaim for exceptional and diverse planning and design for The Greenbrier Hotel, The Lodge at Pebble Beach, Turnberry Isle Resort, The Hotel Hershey, LaQuinta Resort and Club, The Coeur d’Alene Resort, The Don CeSar Hotel, The Equinox, The Lodge at Koele, and The Broadmoor Hotel.
TAG Galyean is an award-winning Master Designer™ best known for a lifetime’s portfolio of work that combines innovative and visionary design principles with a comprehensive understanding of business and entrepreneurial courage. He has a history of architectural, landscape and interior design expertise acquired at leading, independent luxury resort hotels in America.
TAG is a Co-Founder and President Emeritus of Smooth Ambler Spirits, Inc., Co-Founder and Brand Manager of the West Virginia Great Barrel Co., Co-Founder and Vice President of Bkind Development Co., president of the Lewisburg Foundation, Founder and President of the Greenbrier Valley Aquatic Center Corp., and a Hospitality Design Platinum Circle Award recipient.
He has served as Governor of Cranbrook Schools, thesis advisor at MIT, Resort Master Plan speaker for the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, guest lecturer at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, and has served as a judge for the Gold Key and the HD Design Awards.
TAG joined the Hallings when the BHAWK Distillery Campus was just a dream. He is honored to bring his entrepreneurial, architectural design, and business strategy experience to help bring BHAWK to life. He is a lifelong mentor to the Hallings.
Tag attended Woodberry Forest, The Stowe School, Buckingham England, Stanford University and the Pratt Institute (BArch 1966), followed by graduate studies at New York University’s Real Estate Institute.
“What an opportunity! To be a part of distilling America’s native spirit and to do it with a group of trusted friends – it’s the American Dream and I get to do it with my mates!”
Colonel, U.S. Army Retired
Founder and Former Owner, Far Ridgeline Engagements
Colonel,
U.S. Army Retired
Founder and Former Owner, Far Ridgeline Engagements
“What an opportunity! To be a part of distilling America’s native spirit and to do it with a group of trusted friends – it’s the American Dream and I get to do it with my mates!”
Ron Russell is a retired U.S. Army Colonel, entrepreneur and co-founder of a successful veteran-owned small business, Far Ridgeline Engagements, which was successfully acquired in 2022.
Ron graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Infantry. He spent the majority of his military career in Special Operations, serving in some of the most elite units of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command, commanding at all levels and serving in combat in Panama, Somalia, Bosnia, and Afghanistan as well as numerous other contingency operations. He retired from the US Army as a Colonel in 2006 after three decades of active service and expertise in all facets of Special Operations.
In 2007, Ron and three friends formed Far Ridgeline Engagements, Inc., a defense contracting company based in Southern Pines, North Carolina. They grew the company from four to 150 employees at the height of the company’s growth. Employees were the point of differentiation in Far Ridgeline’s success, where they focused on hiring the right people and creating a family like culture where everyone succeeded together.
Ron also has a decades long relationship with co-founder Brad Halling, including serving together in Mogadishu, Somalia. That professional contact grew into a personal friendship that has only been strengthened over the years.
Serving on the BHAWK board is an opportunity to honor the legacy of service and extend expertise to fellow veterans building a purpose-driven company to thrive today while preparing for the future.
Colonel,
U.S. Army (Retired)
Co-Founder, COO, Brad Halling American Whiskey Ko.
“The PenFed Foundation’s Veteran Entrepreneur Investment Program (VEIP) is thrilled to invest in BHAWK because of its outstanding leadership, purpose-driven brands, and mission to honor the extraordinary service of extraordinary Americans. As both a Veteran and whiskey lover, I am proud to serve on the board of what promises to be one of America’s iconic craft whiskey brands.”
Executive Vice President, Consumer Banking and Strategy, PenFed Credit Union
Board Member, PenFed Veteran Entrepreneur Investment Program
U.S. Army Veteran
Executive Vice President, Consumer Banking and Strategy, PenFed Credit Union
Board Member, PenFed Veteran Entrepreneur Investment Program
U.S. Army Veteran
“The PenFed Foundation’s Veteran Entrepreneur Investment Program (VEIP) is thrilled to invest in BHAWK because of its outstanding leadership, purpose-driven brands, and mission to honor the extraordinary service of extraordinary Americans. As both a Veteran and whiskey lover, I am proud to serve on the board of what promises to be one of America’s iconic craft whiskey brands.”
Ricardo serves as EVP, Consumer Banking and Strategy for PenFed Credit Union, the nation’s second largest federal credit union. He is responsible for consumer banking products and services and leads the Executive Team in the development of strategic plans that influence business growth and profitability. Ricardo also spearheads PenFed’s mergers and acquisitions and corporate development strategy and has consummated over a dozen merger partnerships while at PenFed.
Ricardo has nearly 20 years of experience in financial services and investment banking, including leadership roles at UBS Investment Bank and Lazard. His prior advisory engagements include advising InBev on its $62 billion acquisition of Anheuser-Busch and advising Hilton Hotels on the $26 billion leveraged buyout by the Blackstone Group. Ricardo also previously led a 60+ store multi-channel and multi-product consumer finance company in Spain.
Prior to his corporate career, Ricardo graduated from West Point and obtained an MBA from Harvard Business School. Ricardo served as an intelligence officer from 1999-2004 and deployed to both Bosnia and Iraq. For this service, he was awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal as well as Bronze Star. Ricardo is passionate about giving back to the community and serves as a Board Member for the Armed Forces YMCA and the Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Riccardo continues serving the military community as part of PenFed Foundation’s VEIP, extending his financial and corporate development expertise to Veteran entrepreneurs and small business owners like BHAWK co-founders Brad and Jessica Halling. Ricardo’s relationship with BHAWK began in early 2021, when Jess and Brad participated in the VEIP Master’s Program, a startup accelerator for Veteran-led businesses. BHAWK’S business model stood out as a promising investment opportunity. As such, VEIP made the decision to invest in BHAWK not only because their product has the potential to become a household name, but also because Brad and Jess Halling are exemplary Veteran entrepreneurs.
Outside of work and service, Ricardo enjoys whiskey and grilling. His favorite hobbies include golfing, flying, reading and spending time outdoors. He resides in Great Falls, Va. with this wife, three children and two dogs.