b'Hewashunchedoverand his doctors said his back surgery waswhite-knuckling the steering wheel, a success, he had not fully recovered.recalled Bruce. IwashavingahardtimejustAbout45milessouthof walking around the block with Mya,Huntsville,theypulledoffthe saidBruce.Iwouldhavetosithighwaytospendthenightin down. But, each time we walked, weGuntersville, a fishing town known wouldgoalittlefarther.Hehasforitshaunted,man-madelakes. sincelost45pounds,andcreditsLegend has it that on quiet evenings, Mya, one hundred percent.boaters may hear the eerie baying of Now, they are up every morningCoonhoundsechoingacrossthe at 5am for a three to four mile walk.waters, said to be the spirits of hunt- If the weather is just right, Mya mayingdogswhosegraveswerenever jumpintheriverforaquickdip.moved before the dam was built and When they return home, Bruce triesthe farmlands were flooded. todosomework,butadmitsheBruce and Dick were so exhaust- would rather just play with Mya alled, they didnt care about ghosts, nor day long.did they notice the condition of their During their walks, Bruce noted Mya and her Hearts of Gold teammates, Bennymotel room. At least, not until the how friendly Mya was with everyone. and Buddy, during a visit at Madison Oviedo.next morning as the sunlight leaked Iftheymadeeyecontactwithher,through threadbare curtains. shewouldwalkuptothem.Thankfully, Myas meet and greet Everyone loved her, and I wanted towas a success. Bruce paid the $300 domorethingswithher,hesaid.rehoming fee, Mya jumped into the Someonementionedlookingintobackseat,settlinginnexttoRoxie, therapydogworkandaftersomeand off they went. research, Bruce contacted Hearts ofTheydrovenonstoptoDicks Gold, the community service exten-daughtershomeinLongwood, sion of Golden Retriever Rescue ofFlorida,arrivingthatevening.It Mid-Florida (GRRMF).turns out Dick forgot to mention to In May 2023, Bruce took Mya tohis adult kids that he and Bruce were the Orlando Public Library to haveaway. Whentheyfoundoutwhere herevaluatedbyamemberoftheir father and uncle had gone and HeartsofGold.Afterpassingherwhy, the question of sanity may or initialevaluation,BruceandMyamay not have been mentioned in the workedwithanAKCdogtrainerchaoticconversationthatensued. to obtain her Canine Good CitizenAndbesides,someoneortwomay certification. have said out loud that they thought Today, in addition to their dailyBrucecouldnttakecareofadog. walks,MyaandBrucesroutineEveryone,thatis,exceptCorey, includesvolunteeringasatherapyBrucesdaughter.Inthefrayof dog team a couple of times a week.theevening,aspeopleanddogs Together with other Hearts of Goldnavigatedforpersonalspaceand volunteers,theyvisitassistedlivingvoice-time, it didnt take Mya long to facilities to interact with the residentsfigure out she was with Bruce. and libraries to participate in readingMya took up space not only in programswithchildren.TheyalsoBruces home, but his heart as well. work with hospice on an as-request-Thisnewbreathing,livingbeing edbasis.Therearenottoomanywith needs of her own soon occupied Hearts of Gold dogs certified to domuch of his time and changed up his hospice work, Bruce told us. routine, including taking daily walks. The hospice work is difficult forThe walks were cautious at first, as Bruce, but it comes natural to Mya,Mya instinctively worked her thera- eventhoughthereislittletonopeutic charms on Bruce. Even though interaction with the patient. Continued on the following page gwww.TheNewBarker.com THE NEW BARKER 39'