The good guys thread

[Taz_Zoee]

Oh, that story brought on the tears.

RIP Bella!!

[Karen]

Aww, like the Border Collie emissary that attended Uncle Mac's funeral.

[kuhio98]

Xena, Warrior Dog
She’d run out of ideas to help her special needs son.
Linda Hickey

I picked up popsicle sticks from the den floor. I’d spent all afternoon writing words on them, trying to make it fun for my younger son, Jonny, to speak...or even just to repeat the sentence that my husband, Grant, and I had been practicing with him for months: “Do you want to play?”

It didn’t work. Nothing worked. Jonny knew how to read, though not at his grade level. He knew how to speak too, but no one could get more than a word or two out of him, if that. I’d tried every idea I could think of, talked to God about it the way I talked to him about everything. But Jonny was eight years old. If he couldn’t speak in sentences and hold a conversation by now, would he ever?

It went beyond unlocking his speech. If Jonny could talk, it would open a whole world of possibilities for him. He would be able to connect with people, maybe make a friend. That was what I wanted for him more than anything.

Jonny didn’t hit the developmental milestones that our older son, Christian, had. Things that didn’t faze other kids, like picking up food with his hands or having someone stand too close to him, freaked him out.

He was two when we got the diagnosis: autism. I could hardly say the word. I avoided telling people. I didn’t want them to judge him. We tried physical, speech and occupational therapies. Special diets. Medication. Nothing changed.

Jonny was content to be with his family, but he ignored everyone else, even our two gentle old dogs. It broke my heart to see him retreat into himself, playing all alone. In some ways that was harder to take than his other behavioral extreme—uncontrollable meltdowns.

I never knew what would set him off. Once in the deli line at the supermarket, he’d started hyperventilating. Was it something he smelled? The sight of the deli meats? People crowding him? “Jonny, focus,” I said. He stared through me. Then he fell to the floor, kicking and screaming.

“Is he okay?” other customers asked. I’d hurried Jonny out of the store. I didn’t say what I was thinking. No, he’s not okay. He probably never will be.

I felt ashamed for thinking that. I hadn’t given up hope for Jonny, but I’d run out of ideas to help him. I was so discouraged, so exhausted. I flopped now onto the couch. The local news was on.

A horrifying image. A fawn-colored puppy on a veterinarian’s exam table, covered in scabs, so emaciated it was hard to believe she was alive. The reporter mentioned that the rescue group had set up a Facebook page under “Xena, the Warrior Puppy.” They were hoping she would pull through.

I grabbed my laptop and went to the page. “Xena appears to be a four-month-old Lab mix,” the post read. “Her nose scabs are likely from trying to escape a locked crate where she had no access to food. Her chances of survival are less than one percent.”

My heart went out to the little dog. “Please let Xena live,” I asked God. Like I said, I talk to him about everything.

The next morning before the boys woke up I checked Facebook. “Xena made it through the night and she’s eating!” Yes!

From then on, I checked her page several times a day. Grant teased me about my new obsession. I wasn’t the only one. Xena had more than 9,000 followers. Little by little, she grew stronger.

It might sound strange that I got emotionally invested in a dog I’d never met, but Xena was so inspiring. She’d been given almost no chance of surviving, yet here she was, thriving. A warrior, all right. I wasn’t holding out for something that miraculous for Jonny, but maybe there was hope for him yet.

I saw an update one afternoon saying there would be a meet and greet with Xena in November, about two months after I’d seen her on TV. I told Grant. “Isn’t that for people looking to adopt her?” he asked.

I nodded. “I know it’s crazy to take on another dog now,” I said. “But we would give her lots of love.”

Grant’s expression softened. “Okay,” he said. “Just don’t get your hopes up. I’ll bet tons of people want to give her a home. And there’s no guarantee she’d get along with our dogs.” He didn’t have to add, What about Jonny? There was no telling how he’d react.

A few days before the meet and greet, I found out something else that gave me pause. A Facebook update said that Xena wasn’t a Lab mix after all. She was a pit-bull mix. I’d seen scary stories on the news about pit bulls attacking people. Could they be trusted around kids, especially one as unpredictable as Jonny?

“I don’t know about this anymore,” Grant said.

“Me either,” I admitted. But then I thought about how I didn’t want people to judge Jonny because he had autism. How could I write off an entire breed of dog? “Maybe we should just see what she’s like.”

“Fine,” Grant said with a sigh.

The meet and greet was packed. People milling around, even TV news crews. I tensed. What if Jonny freaked out? “Don’t worry,” Grant said. “We won’t stay long.”

We were there maybe five minutes. Just long enough for me to thank Chrissy, the woman who had rescued Xena, for bringing me so much hope the past couple of months. And to see Xena make her entrance. She seemed totally friendly, darting up to people, unafraid despite her history of abuse. That made me want her all the more.

At home I filled out an application to adopt Xena. There were no questions about family members with disabilities. If they weren’t asking, I wasn’t telling. That night, as I made dinner, Grant turned on the news. “Linda!” he called. “It’s the meet and greet.”

I ran to the den. There was Xena. “She’s running straight to Jonny! Did he actually smile at her?”

“I can’t believe I forgot to tell you,” Grant said. “It happened so fast, and we were in such a rush to leave.”

Three months went by and I didn’t hear from the rescue group. All I could do was keep praying and checking Xena’s Facebook page.

Finally, I got a call from Chrissy. “We considered the applications carefully,” she said. “We think your family would be a good fit. Would you like to take Xena for a trial visit?”

I shouted yes so loud I think God might have needed earplugs in heaven.

Xena was dropped off that Monday morning to meet our other dogs before Jonny came home from school. The dogs sniffed each other, then ambled around the house together. Well, the other dogs ambled. Xena bounded.

Time to pick up Jonny. I opened the van door and Xena hopped right into his booster seat. “Make yourself at home,” I said, laughing.

The carpool line seemed to take forever. Finally Jonny slid open the door.

“Remember Xena?” I said.

His eyes lit up. Xena hopped out of the booster seat. Jonny got in. His seat belt clicked. Then I heard something else.

“Mom, look! She has four legs! And two eyes. And two ears. And she’s brown and white. And she has a booboo on her nose.”

My breath hitched. Did Jonny just talk? In complete sentences? How could that be? After all these years.…

“That’s right, honey,” I said.

“She needs a Band-Aid for the booboo,” Jonny declared.

Now I was the one who couldn’t speak.

Xena jumped into Jonny’s lap, crowding him. He giggled, not minding one bit.

Xena became a part of our family. She’s gotten Jonny to open up in many ways. Not only did he get over his phobia of touching food, he makes her dinner every night. He chatters nonstop and even got an award at school for his friendliness. He marches right up to people at the supermarket and says, “Give me a hug!”

I took over Xena’s Facebook page. I proudly tell thousands of people about Jonny’s autism and the incredible difference Xena has made.

“What kind of dog is Xena?” I like to ask Jonny.

“She’s a warrior, Mom!” he says.

“That’s right. Just like you.”

Miracles too, both of them. That’s what I talk to God about these days.

[Taz_Zoee]

Love the Xena story. Although, it was difficult to read the end through the tears of joy!!

[kuhio98]

Community thanks beloved mailman with notes, money for trip to Hawaii

LAYTON — Mailman Brent Coulam’s 42 years of service in a Layton community went far beyond delivering letters.

As a token of thanks, residents of the West Layton neighborhood where Coulam worked surprised him by attaching balloons to mailboxes filled with thank-you notes and gifts Saturday, the last day before his retirement. They even gathered “fun money” for him to use on a vacation in Hawaii.

“He was very touched,” resident Andrea Abbott said. “He even got teary-eyed a couple of times. A lot of people just made the effort to come out and say goodbye and give him hugs. We had little kids out there. He loved those little kids and would always wave and talk to them.”

Coulam helped a lot of people in many ways, according to Abbott. He’s been delivering her mail since she moved into the neighborhood 22 years ago.

Examples of Coulam’s acts of service include carrying groceries and taking mail directly to residents' doors when he knew someone in the family was sick. A couple of weeks ago, he noticed a truck on fire and ran up to the home to let the owners know.

“They ran out, and he stayed out there with them and tried to help put the fire out until the fire department came,” Abbott said. “Then he went on his way, but he saved that family’s home from being destroyed by a car fire.”

Despite all the praise, Coulam remains humble.

"It's just part of the job," he said. "It really is part of the job. You're supposed to keep our eye on the public.”

During his decades of service, Coulam became close with many of the people on his route. Neighbors said he always took the time to chat with people who were outside and remembered what family members were doing.

"I have kids in this neighborhood who have kids who are grown," he said.

[kuhio98]

Cape Coral firefighters rescue trapped ducklings

family of ducks fell into a storm drain in Mid cape on Monday.

Shortly before 10 a.m., resident Sandy Pizarro saw a mother duck and about 10 ducklings along NE 15 Place west of Del Prado.

“When I first saw them there was about 6-8 or so, but when I looked again when taking my daughter to the school bus I only saw four.”

When leaving again a short time later there was only one duckling and soon that one disappeared. Pizarro approached a dental office for help who in turn called the fire department.

Firefighters responded and discovered the ducklings had fallen through a very narrow grate at the entrance to Capri Commons. There was no way to open up the area and get down to the ducklings, which were approximately 2-3 feet below ground.

It didn’t take long for the crews to come up with a safe way to get to the ducks.

“Since there was no way to get down to the ducks, and since ducks love water, it made sense to float the ducks up to within reach,” said Michael Heeder, Public Information Officer for the Cape Coral Fire Department.

Firefighters used tank water to fill the drain. As the water rose inside the catch basin, the ducks floated toward the grate.

Engineer Todd Clark, using a pair of tongs, was able to reach in and pull the ducklings to safety all while the mother duck kept a watchful eye from a distance.

What was thought to be 8-10 ducks ended up being 20 ducklings, and all were saved by the firefighters. It took nearly an hour to catch all of the ducklings.

None of them were injured in the rescue effort and once all ducklings were removed, mother duck and children found shelter in a culvert nearby.

“While we do handle animal rescues including ducks on a fairly regular basis, each rescue itself is unique,” said Heeder. “We have to balance the need for helping with the need to have our units immediately available for fires and rescue calls in our community. That being said, we will always respond and assist when someone calls for help.”

[kuhio98]

Entire Town Secretly Learns Sign Language to Give a Deaf Man Best Day of His Life

This was no ordinary day for a man who is hearing impaired.

On Dec. 24, 2014, Muharrem and his sister, Ozlem, took a walk around their town in Instanbul only to find that everyone they encountered greeted them in sign language.

In this Samsung commercial to promote the company's new video call center for the hearing impaired, the town is shown learning to sign in anticipation of the big day. Video cameras were also placed around the city and to capture those moments when Muharrem was greeted at a bagel shop, or offered an apple, or being apologized to when a woman bumps into him – all delivered in sign language.

As the events unfolded, Muharrem grew increasingly confused along the way, until he came to a Samsung representative and a sign that explained what was going on. The rep also signed to him, "A world without barriers is our dream as well."

What follows is a greeting by neighbors as Muharrem tears up and hugs them all.