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George H.W. Bush’s Service Dog Sully Receives Public Service Award for Bringing Love and Joy
Evan Sisley
Sully was chosen for “bringing not just assistance but love and joy to the former president in the last months of his life.” While he only served Bush for a few months, the pair quickly formeda deep bondthat has extended beyond Bush’s life, as immortalized in a photo of the loyal Labguarding Bush’s coffinafter his funeral.
The highly trained service dog was also recognized for his continued help to veterans since Bush’s death, as he now works to comfort them and assist with rehabilitation center sessions at Walter Reed National Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.
Next up for Sully: He’s gettinghis own bronze statuein the east wing of the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum in College Station, Texas.
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Navy SEAL Starts a Nonprofit to Protect Police and Military Dogs: ‘I Have a Debt to Pay to Them’
Courtesy James Hatch
James Hatch will never forget the night a decade ago in Afghanistan. The Navy SEAL was on a special mission to rescue Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl from the Taliban with the unit’s service dog when a militant fatally shot the dog in the head while another shot Hatch in his right femur, resulting in a career-ending 18 surgeries in two years. “In my mind I had failed,” says Hatch, 52, “and I got that dog who I loved killed.”
Hatch discovered relief with cognitive behavioral therapy. He also started the nonprofitSpike’s K9 Fundin October 2014, providing 925 police and military dogs with medical aid and protective gear. These dogs, Hatch says, are oftentimes put in harm’s way and suffer both psychologically and physically: “I feel as though I have a debt to pay to them. That’s my No. 1 mission.”
In the fall, Hatch started another mission: classes at Yale University as a freshman with his therapy dog, Mina, a Dutch shepherd.
“These kids are amazing and I tell them that,” says Hatch, who studies Shakespeare and the classics. “I have quite a bit of hope now about our future.”
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 or go tosuicidepreventionlifeline.org.
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Pregnant Army Medic Saves Man’s Life After Losing Consciousness at Restaurant: ‘I Feel Blessed’
Jordan Phillips
Just before bringing a new life into the world, Emily Anderson was able to save a stranger’s. At seven and a half months pregnant in February, Anderson, an Army National Guard medic whose passion for emergency medicine began when she was deployed to Iraq, was out to dinner to celebrate her grandfather’s 88th birthday in Lynchburg, Virginia.
At the restaurant, “another gentleman who was there with his family began having difficulty breathing,” Anderson, 28, told PEOPLE. Despite being extremely pregnant, Anderson took charge when no one else stepped in. “I didn’t feel a pulse and I started doing compressions," she said. “After two cycles he regained consciousness. It was a blessing.”
The experience reminded her why she does what she does — and why she plans to apply to the Army’s physician assistant program in 2021, after she finishes studying at Lynchburg University. “There were times throughout my career where I didn’t know if this is what I’m supposed to be doing with my life,” she said. “It comes with a lot of emotional stress, but after that night, it was just like I’m where I need to be. I’m doing what I need to do and I feel blessed.”
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WWII Vet Asks for 100 Cards to Celebrate 100th Birthday — a Request Linked to His Late Wife
Courtesy Brookdale Senior Living
In celebration of his 100th birthday on Oct. 7, World War II veteran James South had a simple request for the public:to receive 100 birthday cards.
“Hello! My name is James South and I am a proud WWII veteran!" the sign read. “I will be turning 100 on October 7th, 2019. I would like to receive 100 birthday cards. Please mail to: 5800 North Park Dr., Watauga, TX 76148. Thank you!”
Letters hold a special significance for James, as his girlfriend, Sophie, wrote him one every day while he was at war, he told local ABC affiliateWFAA. When he returned home, Sophie became his wife, and they were married for 55 years before her death in 2001.
“It would give me a feeling that I am recognized for what I do, what I am,” he said of receiving the cards. “And I would cherish it forever.”
James got his birthday wish — tenfold. Ina heart-warming photoshared on the Brookdale Watauga Facebook page, James was seen grinning over thousands of letters.
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Veteran Marries Girlfriend Just Hours Before Dying from Rare Liver Cancer
GoFundMe
Five hours before dying from his battle with cancer, 20-year-old veteran Tristan Laue was able to cross one major thing off his bucket list:marrying his girlfriend, now Tianna Laue.
“He’s the love of my life,” Tianna toldKKWL. “My mom said, ‘Some people don’t get what you two had in the amount of time … They’ll be together for years and still not have the same connection that you guys did.'”
The couple’s relatives and community pulled together a ceremony in the family’s backyard just 48 hours after Tristan proposed, and the pair said “I do” on April 27. He was laid to rest one week later at Crosspoint Church in Waverly, Iowa.
06of 07World War II Veteran, 96, Is Crossing the Country on Foot Again and Plans to Finish in 5 YearsErnie Andrus/FacebookWorld War II veteran Ernie Andrus is advancing his life’s journey one step at a time. The 96-year-old set off in March onhis second coast-to-coast adventure, having previously run over 2,631 miles — from California’s Pacific Ocean to Georgia’s Atlantic — in two years and 10 months to celebrate his 90th birthday,CNN reported. Now, Andrus ison the moveonce again, this time making the journey in reverse.“I could never turn down the chance for an adventure,” he told the outlet.The war hero predicts the journey will take him five years, as he hopes to run 13 miles each week. His incredible feat is also a message to the U.S. Navy, in which he served during World War II. “If I make it all the way, I’ll be about 100 years old,” he told CNN. “And if a 100-year-old man can run coast to coast, the Navy can give us some help.”Andrus hopes to once again raise money to sail a restored WWII tanker back to Normandy for a D-Day memorial. The fund earned over $33,000 during his last trip, but with a cost of over a million, he’s determined to keep moving forwards.
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World War II Veteran, 96, Is Crossing the Country on Foot Again and Plans to Finish in 5 Years
Ernie Andrus/Facebook
World War II veteran Ernie Andrus is advancing his life’s journey one step at a time. The 96-year-old set off in March onhis second coast-to-coast adventure, having previously run over 2,631 miles — from California’s Pacific Ocean to Georgia’s Atlantic — in two years and 10 months to celebrate his 90th birthday,CNN reported. Now, Andrus ison the moveonce again, this time making the journey in reverse.
“I could never turn down the chance for an adventure,” he told the outlet.
The war hero predicts the journey will take him five years, as he hopes to run 13 miles each week. His incredible feat is also a message to the U.S. Navy, in which he served during World War II. “If I make it all the way, I’ll be about 100 years old,” he told CNN. “And if a 100-year-old man can run coast to coast, the Navy can give us some help.”
Andrus hopes to once again raise money to sail a restored WWII tanker back to Normandy for a D-Day memorial. The fund earned over $33,000 during his last trip, but with a cost of over a million, he’s determined to keep moving forwards.
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Army Veteran Dies with No Family — But a Thousand People Attend Funeral After Obituary Goes Viral
Legacy.com
On Oct. 1, thousands of people drove for hoursto attend the funeral of Army veteran Edward K. Pearson, whom they had never met. Pearson, a Naples, Florida resident, died at age 80 on Aug. 31 in a local hospice facility.
The facility reached out to Legacy Options Funeral and Cremation Services, hoping they could contact Pearson’s family members, but Legacy family services counselor Jeffrey Nieves told PEOPLE they were unable to find anyone. “We had had him in our care for a month and had made every due diligence call to contact family and nobody came forward,” he said.
Pearson’s obituary was then published in theNaples Daily News, noting that all were welcome to attend his funeral at Sarasota National Cemetery, as he had no immediate family. Few people were expected to attend — until the obituary went viral, and hundreds began calling Legacy saying they’d be there.
According toCNN, over 1,000 people came to show their respects for the veteran, who served in the Army from February 1962 to 1964, when he was honorably discharged, and was laid to rest with full military honors.
source: people.com
