Staff Sergeant Nicholas Bennett
with Festus, his service dog.
"On November 11, 2004 while serving on my 1st tour of duty in Iraq my life was changed forever when a Chinese rocket landed 20 feet behind me. It is now 11 years since that event. I have been through 26 surgeries to try and correct the major
physical injuries I sustained.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder along with the repercussions of my physical injuries were robbing me of a normal life.
That was until I received my service dog Festus.
Festus was bred and received training during the most critical part of his life (3 – 12 weeks of age)
through Project 2 Heal.
Project 2 Heal donated Festus to strategic partner, ICAN (Indiana Canine Assistance Network) who trained Festus to work with me. Festus has given me my life back. He not only performs commands which allow me to play with my children again but also to attend functions and go to places I had not been able to since I was injured."
- Staff Sergeant Nicholas Bennett
Samantha & Moonpie
Moonpie is Samantha’s pup from a litter born out of our girl Luna last March. This was one of the first litters we imprinted for diabetic alert. Samantha is a type 1 diabetic. She came to Project 2 Heal once a week from the time the puppies were born until she took Moonpie
home 8 weeks later.
Moonpie is doing fantastic in her training. She alerts Samantha when she scents a drop in her blood sugar. They both are working with Diabetic Alert Dogs by Zak for their training.
Ann Ploskonko & Nala
“Nala has given be back the Independence and confidence that I lost with my disability. She does not just help me by perfecting tasks to mitigate my disability, but she also helps me be more open to meeting people. I have gained a much larger support system with Nala in my life.”
-Ann Ploskonko
(Nala was a P2H puppy donated to Fidos for Freedom)