The nearly 700-pound bear was one of 10 harvested during Louisiana's first black bear season in more than 35 years.⁠ ⁠ Iraq War veteran Deron Santiny first tried hunting as therapy in 2007. He’d been recuperating from multiple surgeries at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, and he got an invite to hunt whitetails in Texas with a veteran’s group based in the southwestern U.S. In the years since, the 54-year-old Army veteran and Purple Heart recipient has hunted elk, mule deer, and antelope across New Mexico with Gino Attardi of the Healing Road Foundation. And in December, the two made hunting history in Santiny’s home state of Louisiana, where Santiny harvested the potential record black bear.⁠ ⁠ Tap the link in profile for the full story 🔗⁠ ⁠ #blackbear #bear #blackbearhunting #bears #bearhunting #louisiana #outdoors #conservation #outdoorlife⁠ 📷: Deron Santiny⁠ Story by: Jonathan Olivier