Heroes H helping H Heroes
T Octavius Young with Petey
he tranquil area of St. Simons Island may seem like an unlikely home for a founder of a nationwide program that has saved over 3,000 lives, but once you meet Dave Sharpe and his wife, Jenny, you will learn just how Companions for Heroes is directly improving, and even saving, the lives of our shelter animals and our nation’s heroes. Both veterans of the United States Air Force, the Sharpes are among the ranks of our nation’s heroes who bravely served and protected our freedom and way of life. But upon returning from war and service to our country, they realized that reintegrating into “normal” life was proving to be challenging; they both had experienced personal traumas that seriously affected their personal relationships and their psychological well being. When Dave’s struggle became too much for him to bear and he found himself on the brink of suicide, another unlikely hero came to his rescue – a tiny pit bull puppy named Cheyenne, whom Dave had adopted from a rescue organization just three months earlier. Cheyenne became a confidant with whom Dave could express his emotions and share his pain, without fear of judgment or misunderstanding. And so it was, Dave and Cheyenne actually saved each other, and out of what could have been a tragic ending, a beautiful and purposeful idea was born. In 2009, Dave Sharpe founded Companions for Heroes (C4H), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization which pairs shelter and rescued animals with active duty military and military veterans as well as first responders (police/fire/ EMS/trauma nurses and doctors), with hopes that these heroes, who may be suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) and other psycho-
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ELEGANT ISLAND LIVING
