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Ken and Buzz

2014-11-09 11.05.56--FB 11-13-14This is a happy man. And he has a happy dog. Because both beat the odds that many do not. Life’s zigs and zags and curveballs that frequently lead bad places. Places that take people so far off course that they never get back. Places like drugs. Heroin to be exact. Places like prison. Several times totaling 18 years. Places like homelessness. Too many times to count.

For those people that are people just like you and I with hearts and heads and love to give but people facing some bigger challenges, the curveballs of life oftentimes never get straight. And when that happens it hurts all of us. Because we all share this earth together.

Ken is one of the people that knows drugs and prison and homelessness first hand. But that was then. And times have changed. Because this fine man has left that world behind and has been accepted into college. He is enrolled in an advanced culinary program and when he graduates he will have accomplished more than anyone may have ever thought possible. Maybe himself included.

But that’s not all.

Because Ken is the man behind the sweet 9-year-old pitbull named Buzz that I wrote about last week. Buzz the dog that was too frightened to come inside our pet food bank so he and his Dad Ken waited patiently outside instead. Choosing to sit on the cold concrete instead of the comfy chairs we offer. Just so they could get food for Buzz without causing him distress. Buzz didn’t mind sitting on the ground. But it was a lot harder for Ken. Yet he made the decision to do so. Because Buzz comes first.

Buzz the dog who has always been warm and clean and dry and well fed even when Ken was not. During all the times when both slept on the streets and there was only food and blankets for one. Buzz got them. Ken did not.

Both now doing their best to fit into a life that may not always be an easy fit. Because not everyone likes pitbulls. Because not everyone likes ex-cons.

We learned about Ken’s being accepted into college just a few days ago at The Pongo Fund. He mentioned it casually, but proudly. He mentioned it because he said we helped him get there. Because we cared about both him and his dog and we were there for them when they needed us.

He shared some of the other details of his life too. As a reminder that people can change when given the chance. People that have hope. And dogs.

What Ken did not expect was the rousing congratulations he would receive from each and every Pongo volunteer. Because each person that saw him made sure to stop and congratulate him. That was more than 20 people offering him congratulations.

When he left he told me that he did not understand how everyone knew that he was now going to college. And I told him that I was so proud of him that I shared it with the other volunteers. And that they were so proud of him that they wanted to congratulate him too.

Ken measures his words carefully. He stood there silent but with a small smile.

And then he put his hand forward to shake mine and he said thank you. And he told me that he’s not used to people congratulating him for anything. And that we had made his day.

And then he turned to leave with that smile molded in place. I could see he was proud. We were too.

Heroin. Prison. Homelessness. Now College. A dedicated and responsible dog lover to a sweet old guy named Buzz.

Ken and Buzz. Buzz and Ken. There for each other. And we are there for them.

Please feel free to congratulate Ken. He deserves it.

And this is why we Pongo.

Sit. Stay. Eat. Live. thepongofund.org