Up Front With Sara Parker Pauley

My first love was a dog named Yeller, a Labrador mix we’d found at the pound. I cared about our family’s other hunting dogs — an English setter named Jinx, a Weimaraner named Weimar — but they were fixated on other things, like escaping our fenced yard to chase birds and cars and running from the dog catcher. But Yeller would look deep into your eyes, perceive your moods, and generally wanted to be with his people.

I fell for my husband because of my golden retriever, Stormy. We had dated for a while, but I still wasn’t sure about our future together. Then Stormy fell sick to cancer. I overheard a conversation my husband (boyfriend at the time) had with her as she lay dying. He said he knew she had taken care of me through some difficult times, she had served honorably, that she could be assured he would take care of me when she was ready to go. And that was that — my heart melted for good — and we married just months later. Long way of sayin’— I’m a dog person.

I especially appreciate dogs that will look you in the eye, know their role in life, and want to serve honorably. And in this month’s issue, we introduce you to the members of MDC’s new canine unit that meet those criteria to a T. These four-legged ambassadors are already getting the job done. From evidence retrieval to public outreach, they are public servants extraordinaire.

I think I’ve fallen in love again.

Sara Parker Pauley, Director

SARA.PAULEY@MDC.MO.GOV