The Dog House at Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida

K9s For Warriors is one of the organizations that put us in contact with their graduates, many who will be subjects in our 2014 Veterans Edition Calendar "Rescued Heroes". We arrived at their new facility in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida on Friday for a tour and opportunity to meet their great staff.  They had recently moved to this property and had finished getting it all ready for a brand new group of Veterans that would be arriving the next Monday.

We were able to meet their development director Sandi Capra who put me in touch with their people, Brett Simon- Director of K9 Operations, Sherrie Keshner - Coordinator K9 Operations, the Deval's son in law who is their business manager and Shari Duval, President and the one all the graduates fondly refer to as "Mom".  We were so anxious to meet her after hearing all the wonderful things her "Warriors" had to say about her.  She is, without a doubt, the heart of this great organization who never stops caring about her graduates.

The house looks terrific with bright and freshly painted rooms just waiting for the next group.  It has been so thoughtfully put together and the decorating is just perfect.  It has this large family room with a fireplace, dining area and a great kitchen overlooking it.  There is a pool, and a kennel facility that is shiny and new with a group up of happy dogs in training now just waiting to become of service to some lucky Veteran.  They have a wonderful office area attached - the whole place is just so cheerful.  They have a large fenced area and a deck in the back.  You just can't help but feel at home here.

Thank you all for taking the time to let us take Lola's photos and for giving us the tour especially with the busy schedule you had getting ready for the next group of guys.  Your graduates tell us they become part of your family after going through the program - it's very easy to imagine that after visiting and meeting you all.  What a wonderful place!!

John and Daisy in Jacksonville

We arrived at John's house just as he and Daisy were getting home from work. He is still active in the Navy stationed in Jacksonville.  John enlisted in 1994 and had a tour in Afghanistan. He had a land based job and was a camera operator- as he put it "the eyes in the sky for the boots on the ground". 

When he got came home from his tour he suffered from PTSD that he acquired due to this land  based duty.  Most of his Navy peers couldn't understand what he was going through which isolated him even more. John had severe insomnia along with nightmares and terrible anxieties. The medications prescribed just made everything much worse.  His wife joined us and explained that things were so bad that they separated. His life started spiraling down to a point where he hit a brick wall.

Luckily a friend of his had received a service dog through K9s For Warriors and John started volunteering for the organization working with the dogs. He applied to them and they help him by evaluating and training Daisy, a Whippet Beagle mix found on Petfinder. John feels Daisy really saved his life and in time he was able to reunite with his wife and children. Here are two pictures of John and Daisy on graduation day at K9s For Warriors and another is that same day of John, his wife and Daisy.

Daisy is an extremely nurturing dog and allows John to use her as a pillow when he has severe migraines.   He told us that he belongs to a support group for those with PTSD.  Once during one of the group sessions another member of the group was starting to have a flashback and Daisy instinctively jumped on this man's lap trying to assist. Daisy is just an amazing dog.  He also said that he finds others at work sometimes stop by to see Daisy when they need some stress relief. 

Today John's life is completely different thanks to Daisy. When we got up to leave I asked John if he could sum up what Daisy mean to him and this is what he said, "Having Daisy as a service dog has broken down all the walls of PTSD and built a bridge to a new life".

We really loved meeting John and his wife and of course Daisy. So not only did Daisy save his life but brought a family back together. It doesn't get much better than that! 

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!