Beau Wann, Jr.
Yes more prayers for Jim and Beverly. Pat, hope your grandaughter fairs well from her jaw surgery. You and Ron are angels for your rescues and to your rescues. Great scott, a great pyrenees? The king of dogs. Dont have much time to go into one of my long dissertations about a Great Pyrenees I knew named BEAR.
Funny you should mention that breed. Our Cooper was part Lab and GP. Of course I've bored you to death talking about him. He looked like an oversized Lab, GP influence and he was all heart, again GP influence.
Here's something you didnt know, and if you do, then bear with me please. Since it's Memorial day past, I was thinking about one of the friends that was kia in Kien Hoa province vn, 5/26/68. Fifty freakin years ago! He was just 23, we were born in the same month. He was just about as good a man as you could ever want to be or know. He would introduce himself as "Jerry Williams from Picher, Ok" . He was so proud of his town.
He always had sort of a shy sheepish grin and an impish twinkle in his eyes. I can still see his smile to this day. He had a wife and of course parents when he was kia.. One of our group got in contact with some of his family somehow and they were inviting him to all sorts of family reunions.
Seems all the feelings and emotions have come flooding back in from thinking about his death and the deaths of other friends in vn. It's something that never leaves you, ever. What a waste of human lives that war was. I've always thought that NOTHING GOOD EVER CAME FROM THAT TRAVESTY. What a horrible waste...
But you know what, something good did come from Jerry's death, however indirectly, COOPER! ! ! ! Yup! I rode my MC to east tidwell park where they set up the traveling VN wall memorial, when I found Cooper. I had been to the real wall in DC twice and twice failed to find Jerry's name or the names of others. Seems I transposed first names with last names, etc. So I thought with a little luck, I just might find those names.
Guess luck was on myside after all. There was a trailer set up with computers inside with the VN Wall Memorial program of all the names on the wall. With help from a very kind and patient vet, he helped me locate all the names I knew. He even gave me some paper and crayolas to sketch or shade the names. Well, not being arts and craft inclined, I tore the paper and broke the crayons, but got some semblance of the names on paper. (I'll bet Ms Hawkins or Ms Cook could have sketched the names no problem).
After visiting all the panels where the names appeared, I walked around visiting all the Veteran booths, ie purple heart Vets, native american vets, army, navy, airforce, marines, coast guard, national guard etc. I saw a lady siting at a table next to a DUCE AND A HALF (2 abd 1/2 ton troop transport truck) and she had two labs tied to the truck, one chocolate and one yellow, COOPER. That wasnt his name when I met him, and I could tell he didnt like the name they had chosen, cant remember what it was though. It'll come back to me.
I ask Lisa if I could pet her dog, and she said he wasnt her dog, but up for adoption. We had just lost our dog, Rocky and werent too keen on replacing him, but it didnt take more n a nano second to say "I want him". She let me walk him about on a leash trusting I wouldnt steal him, and guess since I was on my MC it was a safe bet I couldnt. Had I a sidecar, I'd a been hard pressed to leave Cooper behind.
To make a short story even longer, I walked Cooper back over to the wall and we stopped at each name and I gave each one a final salute. Cooper sat down at each name as well. I knew then there wasnt any way I was not going to adopt this fine pup. Took him back to Lisa, president of the K9 association and Lab rescue league and started the ball rolling on the adoption proceedures. And the rest is history as they say.
You all know that Cooper went on to become a legendary therapy dog for children, regular ed and special ed and autistic. Dont knwo how many children and adults alike that he brought some comfort and connection to normalcy, but it was a lot. He even helped me as well, and I thought I was beyond help!
Did Jerry die in vain? Was his life wasted? No, I dont think so. He shouldnt have died, but he did. If he had not died, and there was no VN, or Vn wall, I wouldnt have found Cooper, and all those children Cooper visited would not have advanced some in this life.
I went to the park SPECIFICALLY to find Jerrys name on a cold stone wall. I found his name and much more, some sort of peace seeing Jerry's name, and a big hearted dog named Cooper. Because of Jerry, Cooper and I found each other, because of Jerry, we were able to help countless children who might otherwise still be stuck in their small prison. I dont know if all this was mapped out in the heavens, but it seems miraculous what all transpired because of the death of a friend.
Jerry's town has long since disappeared. It was a dying lead mining town with just 75 people left in it, and to add insult to injury, an F5 tornado finished the job and completely wiped the town off the map. Jerry passed 50 years ago this month, and Cooper passed 2 years and 4 months ago. A lifetime ago.
I'd like to think Cooper and Jerry are together waiting on me to show up. Cant wait to see both grinnin at me when I do finally make it. Cooper with his grin and outstretched paw....Jerry with his g rin and his "hi I'm Jerry Williams, from Picher Oklahoma...what kept you brother"....
RIP Jerry and all my other vet friends....and rest in peace my very special friend, COOPER....
til we meet again....
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