Good in the News: Ratchet Comes Home

In May, Sgt. Gwen Beberg helped rescue a puppy from a burning trash pile on the streets of Iraq. The became instant friends and the pup, Ratchet, provided much needed love and support to Sgt. Beberg as she served our country overseas. Her goal was to bring Ratchet back to her home in Minnesota once her tour of duty was over. However, the U.S. military does not allow soldiers to adopt pets overseas and bring them back to the U.S.

The story got out, and the SPCA's (Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) Operation Baghdad Pups (OBP) stepped in.

An online petition began (started by a blogger) and as with so many online movements, people jumped in to to lend their support. Over 65,000 signatures were obtained and last Wednesday, the military granted permission for OBP to to bring Ratchet to the U.S. However, the clearance did not come in time for the group's flight out of Baghdad that day. OBP, however, was not giving up. On Sunday, Ratchet was on a charter flight to Kuwait and Northwest Airlines has donated the remaining flights from Kuwait to Minnesota. (It usually costs $3,000 - $4,000 for OBP to bring an animal home from overseas, all funded by donations.)

Sgt. Beberg's tour is not over until November, but when it ends, Ratchet will be ready and waiting for her at home, thanks to the help of tens of thousands of people who neither the soldier nor the dog will ever meet. What power there is in the internet, don't you think?

My prayers are with Sgt. Beberg as she completes her time in the Middle East. So is my respect and my admiration and my eternal debt of gratitude for all that she -- and all her fellow soldiers -- do for all of us each day. So many ugly news that comes out of the Middle East these days... what a nice ray of sunshine this story brings.

Read the full story on CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/19/iraq.ratchet.the.dog/index.html

~*~*~ May you always remember to dance in the rain, and may you have plenty of ladybugs beside you! ~*~*~

Blessings,
Kat