Let us never forget...

Photo courtesy of PAALS It is the VETERAN, not the preacher, who has given us freedom of religion.

It is the VETERAN, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the VETERAN, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the VETERAN, not the campus organizer, who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is the VETERAN, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the VETERAN, not the politician, who has given us the right to vote.

It is the VETERAN who salutes the Flag,

It is the VETERAN who serves under the Flag. PAALS (Palmetto Animals

Assisted Life Services) overall goal is

to train assistance animals to help

individuals with disabilities other

than blindness or deafness. These

animals can help with a vast array

of tasks to assist with physical disabilities,

and social needs as

assigned assistance animals, or

using them through quality programs

to groups or organizations

that can benefit from our assistance

animals.

In April, I had the chance to take a trip to Washington D.C. with some Veterans. The day started much earlier than usual (3:45 a.m. to be exact). I must admit, I wasn’t too thrilled to rise before the sun, but it was worth it. We got to fly on an Honor Flight with Veterans from WWII and the Vietnam War. As a service dog in training I flew at my trainer, Jennifer Rogers’s feet. We sat between two of the friendliest gentlemen, Sydney and Tom. They shared amazing stories about landing in far away places and how the people there tried to hurt them. Being a dog, I didn’t understand it all, but it helped to listen to them and have them pet me as the flight was bumpy with lots of noises, and the floor felt like it tilted back. Truthfully, I was a little scared at first.

When we arrived in Washington it was clear to see these guys were special people. When we got off the plane everyone was cheering and waving flags, and there even was a fire truck water salute over our plane.

While we were there, I took my first bus ride and toured lots of places with big statues. I was the only dog there. Well, there was one really serious working dog in the airport, who I might add was a little rude. He even barked at me, but I know better. I proudly looked up at my trainer and remembered I was wearing my PAALS (Palmetto Animals Assisted Life Services) cape, so not a peep out of me.

When we got to the Korean War Memorial, we saw the guy who flew on the plane next to Chuck. He shared an amazing story about saving someone’s life in combat. He actually fought in three different wars for these humans — what a guy. Later, at the Iwo Jima Memorial, we discovered another guy who was on our flight had been there when they raised the flag. When we made our last stop at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, I got really wet in the rain, but it was worth it.

By the time we got on the plane to go home, we had made a lot of good friends. Everyone wanted to take their picture with me. I didn’t really care about the pictures, but there aren’t enough tail wags to say how much it meant to be with all these special guys. When we got off the plane in Columbia, there was a parade of people with music, flags, and lots of applause. Some of the guys had water in their eyes; maybe they got wet in DC too?

Not only did I get some important training to check off on my way to Service Dog certification, but our trip also gave Jen and Chuck a chance to tell a lot more people about PAALS and the Rob’s Best Friend Fund. We even have a Vietnam Veteran applying for a dog like me? What a lucky dog that will be matched with such a special person.

PAALS would like to thank Bill Dukes and Jim Wertman for including PAALS in their Honor Flight.