‘It changed me’: Inmates help train puppies to help veterans with PTSD, other disabilities
By Tommie Clark
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HAGERSTOWN, Maryland (WBAL) — Several Maryland puppies are preparing for service, destined for veterans living with PTSD and other disabilities.
The puppies are training at an unlikely location, though: the Maryland Correctional Institution — Hagerstown.
“What I didn’t know is the impact it would have on me,” said Barry Roberts, an incarcerated handler.
Inside MCI-H, Roberts spends 24 hours per day with is dog, Big Mike. The Labrador is one of America’s VetDogs in training.
“These dogs are changing lives every day for these veterans,” said Mark Clavenger, a correctional officer and veteran leading the effort.
Clavenger helps inmates raise and train the animals, from just 12 weeks old until they’re ready for their mission — assisting veterans and first responders with disabilities.
Jeffrey Miller, a handler, is also a U.S. Army veteran.
“When I first got out of the service, if I had a dog like this, I probably wouldn’t be here right now,” Miller said.
MCI-H is one of five Maryland correctional facilities participating in the program. In a little more than a decade, more than 100 veterans have received service dogs.
“It motivates me more to know I want to succeed when it’s time to train,” said Tavon Bradley, an MCI-H handler.
The Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services said those involved show lower rates of reoffending, in part contributing to the state’s first-year recidivism rate dropping to a record low.
“It taught me something I didn’t even know I didn’t have. I didn’t have work ethic. I didn’t have much consistency or responsibility in life,” Roberts said.
Marvin Reyes has been behind bars since he was 16 years old.
“It changed me. It gave me a sense of purpose, and it also humanized me,” Reyes said.
Handlers said they’re helping veterans get their lives back while finding themselves in return.
“You can honestly say, ‘I did that,'” Roberts said. “There’s no better feeling in the world than accomplishing something that you worked hard at. Seeing it through. That’s what it did for me.”
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