My son, Kevin, made the decision to go into the military in the third grade. When he was in the fifth grade he chose his future military branch- the Marine Corps. I was incredibly proud of him for wanting to serve our country.
During his first send off to Afghanistan, I remember asking myself, “ How would this deployment change my son, but also how would it change me as a mother?” War has life-changing effects but I didn’t know the extent of it on that day. Kevin would be deployed twice to Afghanistan by the age of 21.
My son taught me about PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury), and what it means to transition back into a civilian life- and the struggle that comes with it. There are effects on both the veteran and their family when coming back from war.
As a certified dog trainer I always envisioned myself training service dogs specifically for veterans, and needed to understand first hand what that really meant. Kevin and I sat down one day while out to lunch and he talked about every symptom and effect of PTSD, brain injuries, physical disabilities, as well as what it means to transition back into civilian life. Through this conversation, I was able to pinpoint even more how a dog could assist with each symptom, effect, and overall transition back to civilian life.
Another issue that he talked about was the 22 lives that are lost on a daily basis to veteran suicide due to the effects of war. With my son’s military experience, and my dog training, we decided we wanted to make a difference in our community. That is how Alpha Bravo Canine was born. We are proud to be Philadelphia’s very first and only non-profit organization training and donating services dogs to veterans.
Alpha Bravo Canine raises, trains, and then donates service dogs to disabled veterans. We offer peer and clinical support to all of our veterans entering in our program, as well as lifetime support for both the vet and their new pup. We serve all eras of war.
Puppies are raised in our Puppy Raising homes who are also a part of training. The cost per dog is approximately $30k. All services provided are free of charge to veterans with combat related disabilities.
It’s important to me that we as a community give back to our veterans who gave to us so much by serving our country.
-Jennifer
For more information on our cause, visit us at www.alphabravocanine.org or @alphabravocanine.
Coast is proud to be a partner with Alpha Bravo Canine, and with your support a portion of our proceeds go to helping provide service dogs to our brave men and women who have fought for our freedom.
Check us out at www.coastbrandsusa.com or @coastbrands