Words from the wife of one of our Marine Veterans, Mike Grywalsky.  Mike has been a Stiggys memeber and friend since 2012 he is paired with service dog Barrett.  Thank you Mollie and Mike for sharing your story and helping us spread awareness!

“Before we had even applied to Stiggy’s Dogs for a dog for Mike, we both did a lot of research to make sure this was the right choice for him. I was leary at first thinking, what can a dog  do for him? My husband was injured August 19, 2021 while deployed to Iraq with the United States Marine Corps. While driving a humvee an IED went off under his vehicle, he now suffers from PTSD and TBI. I was always under the assumption that service dogs were for people with physical disabilities and didnt fully understand what these dogs were capable of. The more I learned about these psychiatric service dogs, the more I was sure that this is what we needed to do.

So many people ask about Mike’s service dog Barrett. “What has he done for you?” I am going to give you an insite into just this from the wife’s perspective. What has Barrett done for Mike you ask? Being paired together since July 2012, Mike and Barrett have an unbreakable bond. The bond between the two of them was immediate, like no other I have ever seen. We both had dogs growing up but this was different, there was something more. Mike began his training down at Stiggy’s in July, he would come home on the weekends and for his appointments at the VA. In just a weeks time training I noticed something had changed when he came home. Something I hadn’t seen in a long time, he was smiling again and enjoying our family time! I met my husband two weeks after he returned from Iraq, his full PTSD and TBI symptoms didn’t all show up at first, so the man I fell in love with was defintately different then the man he was once PTSD and TBI took over. Now that Barrett has been home with us for about 3years I get what I call “stolen moments”. I once told Jen that Barrett has allowed me to have these moments with Mike when I look into his eyes and I see “him”! As a wife, I want to be the “fixer” I want to say or do whatever I need to do to make it better and make it all go away and it is so painful that, that is the one thing that I can’t give him. The nightmares still come, the flash backs still come, but….. yes there is a but….here enters Barrett. In just six weeks time Barrett was able to do something that in 11 years I was not, he was able to take some of the pain away. As hard and as long as these 11 years have been I thank God every day that August 19, 2021 was not Mike’s time. I have the best of him. He has given me 4 beautiful children and I have him, for that I am the LUCKY ONE!

Thank you STIGGY’S DOGS for giving me my “stolen moments” and pairing Mike with Barrett. We will forever be indebted to you! Love you all!”

-Mollie Grywalsky