Local Veteran and Therapy Dog Honored for #StillServing

Pelion resident Steve Smith and his therapy dog Ghost are being recognized in the national Veterans of Foreign Wars #StillServing campaign honoring veterans who continue to serve after the military. For many veterans, canines are an integral part of that service.

A U.S. Navy veteran, Smith and his wife adopted Ghost, a Husky/Great Pyrenees mix, with the intention of training him to become a therapy dog. To qualify for training Ghost needed to be exposed to various situations and people to prove he had a calm temperament. Smith recalls a trip to Soda City Market when a little girl asked to pet him and standing eye to eye with Ghost, grabbed each cheek and planted a kiss on the end of his nose. Ghost stood very still as she pet his ears and said goodbye. It was then that Smith knew Ghost was a therapy dog at heart.

Smith takes Ghost to the USO at Columbia Airport on alternating Fridays when Fort Jackson’s graduating class of soldiers ship out to their new duty stations. As soon as one soldier sees Ghost he is immediately surrounded by young soldiers wanting to pet or take a picture with him. Smith realized the importance of Ghost’s job as a therapy dog when one soldier dropped to her knees to hug him and upon raising her head had tears in her eyes. She told Smith she hadn’t been able to pet a dog in three months and missed her own dog terribly.

Smith says he feels honored that he and Ghost can bring the soldiers a taste of home. He loves seeing the smiles on the faces of pretty much anyone who encounters the big white fluffy dog with Frank Sinatra eyes and a wonderful personality, and Ghost, a “big ham,” in turn loves all the attention he gets.

VFW invites all veterans to submit stories of how they are still serving at vfw.org/stillserving.