Dead Marine’s Family Gets His GI Dog

In a decent world, Dustin Lee would be another 20 year-old kid from the South trying to figure out what to do with his life and trying to find the love of his life to do it with. Sadly, on March 21 in Anbar Province he was killed in a rocket attack, and the dog he handled, Lex, was wounded. Lex had another two years to go before he could retire, but the Marine Corps decided to let the highly trained dog live with Corporal Lee’s family instead. Semper Fidelis is motto every dog in the world, and the US Marines got it from them.

According to the Montgomery Advertiser, “Dustin Lee spent the final months of his life with Lex at his side. He was killed on a daily mission when a rocket-propelled grenade exploded nearby. The dog also was wounded but crawled over to his handler, nudged his face, then lay at his side as a corpsman treated his wounds, Marines in Lee's unit told his family.”

Ben Lockridge of the Meridian Star wrote, “The adoption of Lex, an 8-year-old German Shepherd, by the family of fallen Marine Cpl. Dustin Lee marked the first time the U.S. military has granted early retirement to a working dog so it could live with a former handler’s family, officials said.”

The United States does a lousy job of looking after its veterans. Some 20% of its homeless population are vets, but they make up nothing like 20% of the nation. They don’t get the help they need financially, spiritually nor psychologically. The US military has even asked for sign up bonuses to be returned because a wounded soldier didn’t finish his tour of duty – something that is rather hard to do from a hospital bed.

This time, though, the USMC got it right. Corporal Lee won’t be able to see his little brother and kid sister grow up. He won’t be at the table tomorrow for Christmas dinner. He won’t vote in November for anyone. But Madison Lee, 16, and Camryn Lee, 12, will have Lex to remember him by. That doesn’t make up for losing a brother, but it just might help dull the pain.

© Copyright 2007 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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