Sherry and Lola in Jacksonville

Sherry joined the Marines at age 17 in l986.  After several years of service she left and was a civilian for 20 years.  Like other Vets we've met, she felt "the calling" to serve her country again joining the National Guard at age 40.  Nine months later she was deployed to Iraq. 

She left the service with PTSD and severe back issues. Sherry found herself totally unable to go out due to panic attacks and called K-9's for help because she desperately wanted her life back.  Training with Lola, a medium sized black mix found on Pet Finder, changed her life completely. Here is a picture of the two during a makeover and day of pampering  that K9's planned for the first all women group of Veterans.

After graduating she and Lola started volunteering on a regular basis. Soon she was asked by Sheri DuVal, President of K9s, to become their full time volunteer coordinator and she gladly accepted.  Today Sherry and Lola do whatever is needed to help out and she admits it is absolutely the best job and "therapy" ever.

Thanks Sheri, we had fun getting to know you and Lola too- we hope you'll keep in touch with us!

Nathan and Chance in Jacksonville

On Thursday, October 25 we arrived in Jacksonville, got settled into a hotel and contacted Nathan an Army Veteran who is the proud owner of a service dog called Chance. Nathan's family also lives in the Jacksonville area and they were all getting ready for a family cruise that was leaving the next morning.  Nathan had left Chance at his father's house while he was at an appointment late that day. 

We were losing light so Nathan's father met with us and introduced us to Chance and became Paul's assistant in getting the photos.  Chance was so good and became accustomed to us quickly and we were able to get many good shots.  Nathan's Dad told us that he had been in the Army for 12 years, enlisting at age 19.  He was a helicopter mechanic serving two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. 

He was medically discharged and with the assistance of Chance has been able to return to school full time. Here's a picture of Nathan and Chance at K9sForWarriors on graduation day.  As we left Nathan was just getting home so we had a chance to meet him and get a shot of Nathan with Chance.  Nathan promised to send me a paper he wrote about his life before and after getting Chance so stay tuned for a little more about his story later.

Nathan, it was great meeting you, your Dad, your sister and girlfriend. Give a special thanks to your Dad for working so hard to help us get some great pictures. We hope everything turned out and you were able to find calmer waters on your cruise!

Justin and Cody in Charlotte, N.C.

On Tuesday, October 23 we left Nashville and drove to Charlotte, N.C. through the most spectacular fall colors in the Great Smoky Mountains. Driving through those mountains and series of tunnels is something we won't forget- wow.

Wednesday we met Justin in Charlotte and followed him to a wonderful spot on Lake Wylie for photos. Justin's service dog is a great Labradoodle named Coty.  I can easily see why this wonderful breed is so successful as service dogs- they are extremely smart, loyal and friendly and we just fell in love with Cody. After the photos were done, we spend several hours sitting at a picnic table overlooking the lake, talking with Justin.

 Justin is a Army Vet that served one year in Iraq and three months in Afghanistan before returning to the U.S. wounded. He like many of the Veterans we talked to fought very hard to stay in but after 6-7 months on "medical hold" was told by a West Point surgeon that he was out.

After separating from the Army, he moved to Charlotte, N.C. joining his wife where they had their first child 9 days later. But life with was very tough. Besides all of his physical wounds, he was battling PTSD. His hyper vigilance, inability to be in crowds, along with many triggers kept him housebound. Over the next 2 years he tried counseling many times and many medications but nothing worked.

Luckily for Justin he talked to another Veteran, Rick, who had received a service dog. This friend found with the aid of his service dog he could finally manage his symptoms and was able to get his life back. Justin applied and was accepted to the same program.  While he was waiting for his service dog training period to arrive, he volunteered to transport a dog down to K9s For Warriors from Charlotte.  This dog had been given up  by an owner that had left him horrible shape- his teeth were black, hair completely matted, and he was suffering from malnutrition.  But someone saw the potential in this resilient dog so he was screened by the trainers and OK'd for training due to his aptitude and temperament.

Justin and another Veteran agreed to pick up the dog from the foster family at a Bass Pro Shop in Charlotte for the trip to Florida.  When he arrived, Justin found out that dog was going to be trained for him.  They met inside the store and when Justin went up to Coty, the dog lifted his paw and they shook hands! The picture you see here was taken  at that very moment. "Cody" and Justin bonded on the way down to Jacksonville and Coty stayed on to work with the trainers. Justin and he were reunited months later for their 3 week training together and graduated from the program on May 24 of 2012.  

 

Life has been completely different since they met.  Justin said he laughs more, has his "emotions" back, and is now able to go out in the world again. But the best is just the peace of mind that Coty gives him- something we  have heard quite often. He said "Coty has my back" -every veteran understands what that means. Coty also wakes him from nightmares and alerts him to seizures. Justin's wife told him "It's  good to have you 'home'"- meaning Justin hadn't been the same person since 2003- not until Coty.

And to Justin- thank you so much - what a great time we had with you.  We are grateful that you took the time to explain to us what Vets are going through - there was so much we were unaware of.  It was a  wonderful day- I know we'll stay in touch.

Southern Hospitality Found In Memphis

When we arrived at our hotel in Memphis Paul tried to download the Louisville photos from his camera to our computer, only to discover it didn't work. Knowing this had to be fixed by the next afternoon and Melissa's photos we went off terribly frustrated to the Cracker Barrel for supper.

I noticed turnip greens on the menu and asked the waitress what they tasted like and she didn't know but a handsome man who looked like a Marine at the next table said he could tell me. That started a conversation with him asking if we were on vacation, etc. and we told him what we were doing.  He told us about his years of service and his experiences and friends of his on active duty suffering with PTSD unable to admit to having it or asking for help fearing they would lose their standing. His very pretty wife and young son joined us and we continued talking for some time. They finished first and we said good bye- they made our stop so much interesting but also reminded us how devastating PTSD can be to servicemen and women and how trapped so many feel with their situations- unable to ask for and get help. Instead they just try and manage to get through their days.

When we were finished and went to the cashier to pay our check, we were told the couple at the table next to us paid for our meal. We asked the manager if he could find their information so we could thank them properly but after hunting through the receipts he just couldn't be sure. They were going to check in on our blog and if they do we want them to know we thought it was a beautiful gesture- thank you!

Then the next day we went into the Best Buy close by and the head of the Geek Squad totally fixed what was wrong with the computer and spent a lot of time explaining how to avoid issues in the future. He had friends very involved with rescue and when we asked how much we owed him he said "Nothing" !! So thank you again Nathan of the Memphis Best Buy Geek Squad!

So how about that for Southern Hospitality??!

Monday, October 22 with Melissa and Chauncey in Memphis

Today we met Army Veteran Melissa, her service dog Chauncey, a large handsome golden retriever,   and her friend Joe. We found a great spot in a park and once again were blessed with perfect weather. It was so easy to get good shots of Chauncey because he was such happy dog and glad just to be outside.  After Paul was sure he had good shots, we had a chance to talk about her special relationship with this wonderful dog. 

Melissa went into the army in 1992, after several years went into the National Guard where she remained until 9-11.  On 9-11 she was heading to the first day of a new job when she heard on her car radio that the Twin Towers had come down.   She never started that day, instead she re-upped into the service again, later deploying to Iraq. She served in a hospital unit and saw the horrors of war on a daily basis.  In 2004 she was medically retired. 

I asked her what life was like before Chauncey and like so many other vets with PTSD, she was totally housebound. This was due to panic attacks that could be triggered by many things outside of her home. She told us she couldn't go into a convenience store for milk without having a panic attack. A cardboard box along the road meant a possible road side bomb. So she stayed at home with the depression that comes with isolation.

She had heard about the great results service dogs were having in managing PTSD symptoms and started searching online for an organization to help her. She became discouraged after finding most organizations required a 3-6 month stay and training period or that the organization served only veterans with physical disabilities.

`She was ready to give up but decided to call one more- K9s For Warriors in Florida. One of the founders, Sheri Duval listened to her and said "Send in your paperwork NOW", she did and was accepted to their program. After communicating back and forth with their head trainer, a trained service dog was thoughtfully chosen for Melissa.  In June of 2012 she started the three week training period at their facility where they "fine tune" the training to include the Veterans own personal needs and symptoms.

Something unexpected happened during their training period. While training with Chauncey, she suddenly realized after the first two weeks, that she was no longer stuttering. Melissa said that every aspect of their training was life changing. This organization also treats their veterans to an array of special events from makeovers to massages.  Every veteran we have talked to that has gone through this program has raved about the treatment they received and more important, how special it made them feel.

Even though Melissa and Chauncey have only been together for 5 months, Melissa's life has changed dramatically.  I asked what was the most life changing and she said that she is able to go out into public again. With Chauncey giving her confidence and watching her back she has regained her life. She is a full time student now and said everyone on campus loves Chauncey.

She has a website http://fightingptsd.org/ and if you want to know more about her life and also find an excellent section defining PTSD and TBI - check it out. Looking at Melissa and Chauncey, we have no doubt their future is bright. Thank you so much Melissa and Chauncey for spending time with us today- we really loved meeting you - oh and Paul wants to thank Joe for helping with the photos and making it more interesting for Chauncey with all his "ringtone special effects"- they worked! 

October 21st- Alex and Chris in Louisville, Kentucky

Hi Everyone, 
After our first 2011 miles, we are in Charlotte and I'm going to try really hard tonight to catch you all up on the last couple days. Here is our blog from Sunday, October 21:

Sunday, October 2lst  we were in Louisville, Kentucky.  It is was a really beautiful morning- clear blue skies and 70.  We met up with our first two veterans and their dogs- Chris and service dog, Niko along with Alex and his service dog Skip. Both of these Veterans went through K9s For Warriors for their service dogs. This organization was founded by PGA golfer Bob DuVal and his wife Shari. We'll tell you much more later about this great group-here's the link if you want to know more now http://www.k9sforwarriors.org/

We asked Chris to pick a good site for the photo session and he chose the Zachary Taylor National Cemetery. We soon understood why he chose this location.  It was just beautiful with huge oak trees throughout and at their peak of color.  The grounds are all surrounded by an old stone wall. Alex was the first to arrive with his dog Skip. We couldn't help but notice right away the great relationship between these two. 

Alex is 27 years old and joined the army at age 17. He also was in ROTC during his high school years. He served 2 tours in Iraq as an MP during his 6 years of service. As Paul was photographing Skip, I asked Alex to tell me about the difference Skip has made in his life. After his discharge from the service he found he couldn't leave the house for five months and often thought about suicide. He was on eight different medications but nothing helped until he met Skip.

Alex told me that after they first met and completed their first day together of training at K9s For Warrior, they went to sleep. During that first night he woke up with Skip barking in his face and thought "what the heck is this dog doing?"  He then realized he was drenched with sweat - Skip had just woke him up from a nightmare. From that moment on he knew Skip was the right dog for him. He said Skip helped integrate him back into society and the most important thing was that Skip "taught him how to love again".  

 Soon Alex will be leaving on a promotional tour all over the country with a group that is raising funds and awareness for service dogs for Veterans. Here is a picture taken for that tour. Skip, by the way is probably one of the cutest dogs I have ever seen. I asked him about Skip's rescue story and he said that he was just left at a gas station in Florida. After being rescued, he was screened to become a service dog and his training started at K9s For Warriors.

Soon Chris joined us all with his gorgeous German Shepherd, Niko. Chris, age 36 was also an MP and served for 10  years with 2 tours in Iraq. Until he received Niko, he had been housebound for one year and was on 16 different medications.  I asked him also to tell me how Niko has helped him and he said that the very best thing was being able to reclaim his independence. Today he is on five medications instead of sixteen. He added that only one of those medications now is for mood. 

Paul and I want to thank Chris and Alex for the time they gave us Sunday morning- it was just wonderful finally talking to them in person.  We were so impressed with these young men and it was such an honor to meet them. These are our first two veterans on this journey and it is absolutely amazing to hear the difference these dogs are making in the lives our Veterans. What a beginning! 

Well, it's on to Memphis to meet our next Veteran, Melissa and her Golden Retriever, Chauncey.

Lynn

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you to these people who helped to get us on the road.  I'm sure all you dog lovers know how important it is to leave your dog in good hands when you need to. We are so grateful to Beth and Stephen who are staying with our Cairn Terrier Maddie, as seen in this picture. What great friends they are for giving us this important peace of mind for the next couple weeks!

 

Next, thanks to Gail at AAA for heading us in the right direction- we have three bags of maps and all the information we need to meet up with our Veterans. She made the itinerary of this 4,000 mile trip actually look possible.

And now for the Avis Crew at the Mpls International Airport. Avis has the motto "We Try Harder" and believe me- they really do. Avis is responsible for the gas efficient Toyota we are using -we'll tell you more about their role in this blog a little later. Just know they helped us reserve exactly what we needed, model wise, when no one else would! In the picture with Paul are three of the Avis crew who helped us get on the road.




 

Thanks to Casey (son) and Melissa for putting us up in Kansas City for our first night on the road. We spent Saturday driving to Louisville, KY and just can't get over how spectacular the colors are right now- absolutely perfect timing.




This morning we met with Chris and Alex our first two incredible heroes and it couldn't have started better - these are truly two of America's finest. We had hoped to tell you all about this wonderful day but like Murphy's Law, we had a glitch downloading our photos. Hopefully the "Geek" squad here in Memphis can resolve all our problems in the morning!

Tomorrow we are meeting our next hero Melissa and service dog Chauncey, a beautiful golden. We promise to give you a full report with photos tomorrow night!





 

The Purpose Of Our Blog by Paul and Lynn Sansale

In 2012 Paul and I produced our first calendar called "Rescue Dog to Therapy Dog". It featured Paul's paintings of 12 rescued therapy dogs and told their story along with a dog/owner photo. We did this to bring awareness to the overwhelming problems the dog rescue world was facing due to the recession.

Someone purchased a case of those calendars to use as a fundraiser for an organization we had never heard of before -Paws and Stripes. Curious, we looked up this website and listened to founder and veteran Jim Stanek discuss his PTSD and TBI symptoms and how his specially trained service dog Sarge restored his life when nothing else worked. Long story short, we were so impressed by all we found out over the next year about these specially trained dogs and their vital work, that we decided to devote our 2014 calendar to telling their truly amazing stories.  

When we looked to our state of MN to find a Veteran with PTSD and a service dog, we could only find one.  We made his the cover dog on our 2013 Calendar "Rescued Heroes".  In order to find 12 rescued service dogs of Veterans for our 2014 calendar, we needed to go to other states that had programs that trained these special dogs specifically for "invisible wounds".  After studying many, we chose two we really admired- Paws and Stripes in Rio Rancho, New Mexico and K9s For Warriors in Ponte Verde, Florida.

During the next 2 1/2 weeks we are traveling to meet 14 rescued service dogs that belong to Veterans that  received and trained their dogs through one of these incredible programs.  We have made arrangements to meet our Veterans in  Louisville, Memphis, Charlotte, Jacksonville, Dallas and Albuquerque and places in between.  We'll photographing each of them and getting information for their stories, eventually turning it into a 2014 Calendar "Rescued Heroes- Veterans Edition". 

Stay tuned and follow along with us as we meet our "Heroes" over the next seventeen days!