We recently shared the sad news that RUBY had died.
 
The sweet dog who became the first RESCUE pup to be accepted into the Rhode Island State Police K9 unit, and whose story INSPIRED our wildly popular Netflix movie “Rescued By Ruby,” had graduated to heaven.
 
But here, I’d like to share an aspect to the story few have heard.
 
If you recall, it was Trooper Dan O’Neil, hyperactive and dyslectic all his life, who never felt as though he’d “measured up”. As a kid he’d DREAM about succeeding at things. When he went to Fenway Park he’d wonder what it would be like to be someone who was honored on the field and could stand out there and wave back at all the crowds.
 
He would dream about superheroes. They always had a superpower to help them out. He thought if he could make it into the K9 Unit and be paired with a canine partner, the dog’s SCENT would be his superpower.
 
But, due to his special needs, Dan had been redundantly PASSED OVER. At 29 he was about to age out. Then he was told the budgets had been cut. No canine partner would be available.
 
Some would have said, “Okay, that’s it!” But Trooper Dan asked, “What one more thing can I do?”
 
Trooper Dan’s faith and tenacity took him to an animal shelter where volunteer Pat Inman was desperately trying to find a home for Ruby, just before the pup was to be put down in two hours for “unmanageable behavior”.
 
That encounter of Trooper Dan and Pat … divinely aligned … was all God needed to save Ruby’s life.
 
And because God rewards those of us who honor Him, he brought Pat Inman, Trooper Dan and Ruby back together again seven years later when Pat’s son was hopelessly lost in the woods for 48 frigid hours. If you’ve seen the movie, the boy had fallen into a ravine and was barely alive when Ruby’s “super scent” found him. It was a jaw-dropping Godwink that we wrote about in our book.
 
God honored Pat’s faithfulness by saving her son that day.
 
Trooper Dan, we could say, was honored by God in many ways for his dedication to service. For instance, they received the top honor for National Search & Rescue Dog of the Year.
 
Yet, way in the back of Trooper Dan’s mind, there was always one BOYHOOD WISH that had never been satisfied… like a prayer never answered. That dream to one day get to feel what it was like to be one of those people who stood on the field at Fenway Park and wave back at the cheering crowds.
 
Then a Godwink happened.
 
Three weeks before God had Ruby SECRETLY SCHEDULED to graduate to heaven, He divinely aligned a request for Trooper Dan. He and Ruby were asked to show up at Fenway Park … go on the field before the game … and let the cheering crowds honor them.
 
The two of them stood there … like a kid and his pup … and let their dream flow over them.
 
Many good wishes for Godwinks.
 
SQuire