War dog memorial efforts are progressing

Posted 5/26/16

“I think that’s an awesome deal that they are doing something like that for military service dogs,” said Green Beret Army veteran Sgt. First Class Matthew Bessler of Powell. Bessler owned Mike throughout the dog’s 10-year …

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War dog memorial efforts are progressing

Posted

The Big Horn Basin made international news when Mike, the veteran combat dog turned service dog, was shot in October 2015. His death sparked the idea to build a memorial for all canine veterans at Veterans Memorial Park in Cody. Now, six months later, that idea is becoming a reality.

“I think that’s an awesome deal that they are doing something like that for military service dogs,” said Green Beret Army veteran Sgt. First Class Matthew Bessler of Powell. Bessler owned Mike throughout the dog’s 10-year lifespan.

Bessler raised Mike, a Belgian Malinois, since he was a puppy, and the duo completed two tours in Iraq in 2008 and 2009. They received two Bronze Star citations as an Explosive Detection Team, and Mike found more than 2,000 pounds of explosives.

A concept sketch for the statue was made by Vietnam veteran, painter and sculptor John Phelps of Cody. Phelps is preparing the small model for the dog portion of the memorial. Up next will be the handler portion.

Once completed, the memorial will be a life-size bronze statue of a soldier and his military dog, modeled after Bessler and Mike.

“Phelps is doing a great job,” Bessler said. “Using Mike and me as a model is a phenomenal thing.”

Although Mike and Bessler are the models for the memorial’s statue, their names will not be on the memorial, as it will be dedicated to all veteran dogs.

This will be the first monument of its kind in Wyoming, and either the second or third federally registered one in the country, Bessler said. Federal recognition also requires being recognized by the state, and Gov. Matt Mead has already voiced his support.

The whole idea started last fall when Cody resident Carol Armstrong was having coffee with a friend. They wanted to express their sympathy over Mike’s untimely death, so a plan was hatched to start a fundraiser for a veteran dog memorial.

“It is a beautiful thing really,” Armstrong said. “(It) gives closure to some deep concern over this. Dog lovers and military people — people who love the military and pets — people felt helpless and wanted to do something but didn’t know what to do.”

Bessler said that, even though it’s upsetting that it took Mike dying for it to happen, he is glad the monument is underway.

“It will be a pretty neat deal,” Bessler said.

Fundraising still is underway, Bessler and Armstrong said. Anyone wanting to make a donation can do so by:

• Mailing checks to the State of Wyoming Veterans’ Memorial Park, P.O. Box 2261, Cody, WY, 82414.

• Contributing to the “War Dog Memorial Fund” at First Bank of Wyoming in Powell, Cody or Lovell.

Since the memorial is a 501c3 nonprofit effort, all donations are tax deductible. Bessler also said he is working on setting up a website for the memorial.

“We are well on our way, but we have a long way to go,” Armstrong said, adding that she’d like to see it completed in a year.

So far, support has come from across the country for the monument. The area surrounding the statue will have paver stones with the names of military dog teams from the past, present and future, Bessler said. So far, 62 paver stones have been purchased, mostly from the Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas.

No profits are made off of the paver stone sales, Bessler said. He was unsure exactly how many paver stone spaces would be available, but doubted there would be a limit.

“Now it is not just a dream; it is becoming a reality,” Armstrong said.

For more information, call Armstrong, the War Dog Memorial’s organizer, at 307-587-6192.

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