Everyone who knows our Dad, loves him. To our family, he is a hero. In 1969, he was drafted to serve in the Vietnam War. While serving as a Military Police Officer from 1970-1971, he came in contact with Agent Orange and as a result, he developed Multiple Sclerosis. Although he had symptoms for many years, he was diagnosed in 1995. He has a great attitude, and you will never hear him complain, but each year brings new symptoms and a drastic decline in his mobility and overall health. Because of the exposure to Agent Orange, he is now dealing with symptoms beyond Multiple Sclerosis. Currently, he deals with daily severe nerve pain in his foot. He has developed heart problems and had a heart attack this past summer. He has vision problems, hearing loss, constant body aches, headaches and more. He is able to walk very slowly with a walker, but we are all prepared that a wheelchair will be the next step. Foot amputation is also a realistic option in the coming months. Understandably, he also deals with depression, as he imagines what life will look like in the coming years. Watching our Dad go through this illness has been heartbreaking for our family.

To love someone so much but to be helpless to take his pain away, is a terrible feeling. We are all desperate to do anything possible to bring any kind of relief. This past summer, his golden retriever, Bella, passed away at 13 years old. After talking with him and researching options, we have decided that a service dog would be a wonderful option for him. He loves dogs and the companionship of a dog that is trained specifically to meet his medical needs, would truly be life changing. We feel that a service dog could help him physically, mentally and emotionally. We have found a reputable trainer in the area that will train the dog to help our Dad with specific needs that he has, for example, when my Dad falls, the dog will be trained to go and find our mom and alert her. The dog will also be trained to apply pressure to parts of his body when he is in pain. It will be a constant companion- able to go with him to stores, restaurants, emergency rooms, planes, etc. We have located a dog in Washington that is the correct age and is ready to be trained. The cost of this process is high, $50,000.

Because we know how many people know and love our Dad, we are reaching out to friends and family on this platform, to see if we can raise enough money to make this happen for him. It's a big ask and it is not comfortable to be asking for help, but we love our Dad so much and are so sure that this dog will change his life for the better, that we are willing to put this out there and ask for help. Any amount will help. Thank you for caring for him and for our family. We are truly thankful for all of you.