The last thing on Brady’s mind as he walked up the middle of Decker Boulevard on a Sunday morning last October was jetting up to Martha’s Vineyard. In fact, Brady was so preoccupied with fighting pain generated by chemical burns over 75% of his body and dealing with hunger that griped his stomach, he didn’t even notice the traffic rushing past him in both directions. Life was bad, and as far as Brady was concerned, it couldn’t get much worse.

Life is in a constant state of change; however, and when Bill Escue, a co–founder of SQ Rescue, saw Brady wandering lethargically up the busy highway, he devised a plan that would change Brady’s life forever. With the help of his daughter, Karen, and a nearby property owner, Bill got Brady corralled in an enclosed yard. Brady was immediately taken to a veterinarian’s office and then transferred to Crossroad Animal Hospital in Lexington, S.C.

The chemical burns that covered Brady’s body needed special medical treatment. The chemicals had leached out of his body while keeping infection at bay and pain to a minimum. Under the expert care of Dr. Tim Loona m, Brady received the same treatment that human burn victims receive. For two weeks, there were water baths, hydration, and sedated rest. An anonymous donor stepped up to help with the mounting medical bills and slowly Brady began to recover.

Brady was found on Decker Boulevard hungry and badly burned. Bill and his wife Mary Key Escue took Brady home for the rest of his recuperation. With the onset of summer where temperatures soared well into the 90s and humidity was high, Brady began developing sores because of his earlier wounds. Brady is a chow mix and has thick golden brown hair, a detriment in the S.C. heat.

If Brady was going to continue to heal, then he needed to live somewhere else. Brady had to be moved to a different climate, a place where the weather is cool and dry. Mary Key turned to her friend Ellen Harley who was spending the summer in Edgartown, Mass. Ellen appealed for help posting a sign in the general aviation building at Martha’s

Vineyard Airport. Transportation was desperately needed to get Brady out of the heat.

Miracle after miracle happened to Brady. This is him today. Craig Jordan, a private airline pilot, called Ellen two days later. He had contacts with Bank Air out of Columbia, and they were willing to transport Brady as far as Philadelphia.

But more was needed to get Brady to his final destination, and Ellen took the final step to make it happen. She contacted her former husband, Richard Worley, who lives in the Philadelphia area. He had a private jet that he agreed to use to fly Brady from Philadelphia to Martha’s Vineyard.

Brady was flown from Columbia to Philadelphia, and the next day Richard Worley and his wife Leslie Miller flew him to Martha’s Vineyard and delivered him to Ellen. She immediately took Brady to Dr. Steve Atwood, a Vineyard veterinarian.

Miracles continued to happen for Brady because Dr. Atwood happened to have a client, Pamela Putney who had recently lost her dog. Although Pamela and her mother were still grieving the loss of Leika, their 16–year–old chow, they agreed to meet Brady. It was love at first sight.

The veterinarians treated Brady like a burn victim. Brady, now known as Bala, which means spirituality in Tibetan, has finally found his place in the world. He is a busy fellow with meaningful work to do. His job is checking out the back yard throughout the day then rushing back indoors to make sure things are in order. He entertains neighborhood children and keeps company with Rupert, his six year old Jack Russell terrier canine companion. But his main job is watching over Pamela’s mother. Pamela travels extensively doing international public health work. Now she can go without a worry because she knows Bala is taking care of things at home, and all is well.