Patrick Smith found a new sense of purpose over the past eight weeks helping train shelter dogs.
The Navy veteran was one of four veterans who graduated on Wednesday from the Veterans Advancing Lives Of Rescues (VALOR) program in which they get paired by nonprofit Safe Humane Chicago with dogs at the Chicago Animal Care and Control shelter. The dogs have been abused or neglected and rescued sometimes from dogfighting rings and now awaiting adoption to a forever home.
The veterans get referred to the program by Thresholds, a Chicago-based mental health provider. Smith was in between jobs, looking for something to do and volunteered.
“I needed a reason to get out of bed without that same old depressed state of mind and saying no one’s going to hire me, I have nothing to do,” said Smith who lives on the West Side.
Together over eight weeks, they worked twice a week with the dogs on communication skills, socialization, patience and common commands of sit, stay and touch. The vets learned how to greet the dogs and feed them by hand. And of course, there were plenty of kisses, cuddles and belly rubs, too.
“I’ve learned that they go through the same things and emotions that humans do. They’re happy. They suffer through depression and abuse and they’re survivors,” Smith said. “It builds up my self-esteem. It strengthens my committment to want to do more. I feel it makes me a better person.”
The VALOR program started in September 2014 as a way to connect veterans and help them heal from depression and isolation, said Cynthia Bathurst, executive director of Safe Humane Chicago.
“Getting military veterans who have given so much to their country but come back and are having a hard time fitting in, themselves, and going through trauma are perfect for working with dogs who also have been through trauma. They have a connection that can’t be explained,” she said.
Air Force veteran Lazeric Kyle was out of work and struggled with depression. Being in the program allowed him to socialize and focus his attention elswhere and on the dogs, he said.
“I really was doing this mostly as a distraction and then it became really fun,” said Kyle, 57, who lives in East Garfield Park. “I’m not the most social person by nature. Interacting with people and dogs is really helping.”
“It’s been an eye-opening and heart-opening experience to be with these dogs and my fellow vets,” Kyle said.
![Most spring-blooming bulbs are now finished flowering. To ensure you will have a nice bulb show next spring, resist any temptation to cut back the foliage of bulb plants such as tulips and daffodils to tidy up the garden. “The plants need those leaves for at least several more weeks,” said Spencer Campbell, Plant Clinic manager at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. “This is the critical time when they are creating and storing their flowers for next year, and they need leaves to do it.” All bulb plants—including hyacinths, crocuses, and glory-of-the-snow, as well as daffodils and tulips—form a new […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/CTC-L-morton-homegarden-0509-01.jpg?w=481 "Most spring-blooming bulbs are now finished flowering. To ensure you will have a nice bulb show next spring, resist any temptation to cut back the foliage of bulb plants such as tulips and daffodils to tidy up the garden. “The plants need those leaves for at least several more weeks,” said Spencer Campbell, Plant Clinic manager at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. “This is the critical time when they are creating and storing their flowers for next year, and they need leaves to do it.” All bulb plants—including hyacinths, crocuses, and glory-of-the-snow, as well as daffodils and tulips—form a new […]")
