Mary wants to be an American
By Rosemary Calhoun

On a cold morning in the northern region of Iraq, a puppy wandered aimlessly down a road. The never ending hunger and the internal parasites had drained the last surge of energy and all of the hope from her body. She lay down to die.

Just outside a small Iraqi Kurdish town named Erbil, a group of U.S. Special Forces soldiers were returning from a mission in the war ravaged countryside where they were trying to replace chaos and desperation with order and hope.

It was Christmas morning, December 25, 2005, and although bone tired, they knew staying alive meant staying alert and keeping a vigil. They spotted the little black ball of fur lying by the roadside. She was still alive. They named her Mary.

In early July 2007, after traveling over three continents, Mary arrived in Columbia, S.C. She is filled with hope that she will find sanctuary here with a loving family.

Mary's story is about our brave U.S. Special Forces soldiers who, while carrying out a peace mission in a country half a world away, reached out to help a dying puppy. It is a story about U.S. State Department diplomats and government contract Dyncorp employees who watched over her and financed her journey to freedom.

Mary is a purebred Kurdish Sheepdog developed from the gene pool of the larger and thinner Saluki. Her ears have been clipped in the Kurdish Sheepdog style, and she has an inbred herding instinct although she has never relied on it for survival.

Mary's breed is used to herd sheep through the desert and mountainous areas of northern Iraq. Trying to survive in a war torn country where a meal is a luxury to the native people, which leaves very little for the dogs. Mary was abandoned to fend for herself.

Some U.S. Special Forces soldiers were stationed near Erbil, a small town tucked away at the base of the Zagros Mountains. They took Mary home with them and restored her health. When their unit was scheduled to leave the area, they enlisted the help of Dyncorp employees to keep Mary in the U.S. compound. She lived with various families and individuals for the next few months.

In September, the entire compound will be moved to a Korean Military Base located in another part of Iraq. Family pets are not welcome at the Korean base leaving Mary's future in peril. It was decided after that Mary was either to be given away or put to sleep unless by some miracle another solution would emerge. She could not be taken to the Korean Military Base.

Ann Patterson, U.S. Diplomat with the Agency for International Development, is stationed in Erbil, Iraq. Traveling worldwide with pets is second nature to Patterson, having lived on five continents and having her two schnauzers with her on four of them. She stepped up to the plate for Mary and volunteered to get Mary out of Iraq and to Columbia, S.C.

Mary had never been more than two miles from Erbil. She never flew on a plane, ridden in an elevator, spent the night in a five star hotel, flagged a taxi, eaten at MacDonald's, hitched a ride in a Hertz Rent- a- Truck, or walked on the soft cushion of fresh green grass.

But Mary did all of those things and more with the grace and dignity of one who has traveled the globe. Even the two day car ride from Dulles International Airport to Columbia was a treat for her.

Mary is on sabbatical in the loving home of Patterson's parents, but this is temporary. Mary wants to be an American with a permanent address because in America she will never have to hear the bombs ripping through the air or dodge the rounds of machine gun fire or step gingerly over forgotten land mines.

Mary knows this because she has seen first hand how our soldiers and government employees will put their lives on the line day in and day out to preserve freedom worldwide and yet, even in the face of danger, they will stop to help a dying pup lying by the roadside on a Christmas morning.

Patterson turned to her long- time veterinarian, Dr. Van DeGrift, and his staff for advice about getting Mary settled into a permanent situation. Since she would not be here to oversee a permanent placement, she has invested the Animal Protection League with the honor of finding Mary a permanent loving home.

If you are interested in meeting Mary or giving her a loving home, please call Robert Adams, APL Adoption Team Member at (803)345-6634 or (803)351- 3536.