Serving Veterans and First Responders

throughout the U.S.A.

Elizabeth (Lizz) Schmidt
ECB Publishing, Inc.

It’s dark. You can barely make out the shape of the woman in front of you as she walks down the stairs into the basement. You can hear the wood creaking beneath every step. Your heart is racing. Every sensor in your body is telling you to run the other way, but you don’t. You can’t move. Suddenly, a dark shadow reaches out and pushes the woman down into the inky abyss. You let out a shriek, as do the rest of the people in the theater, before you have a good laugh at your own expense.
Having a panic attack is, in many ways, like watching a horror movie, only often and without consent or warning. Our bodies are naturally built to alert us when danger is present. We are wary of the dark, spiders, heights and a number of other things because the sensors in our brain tell us that peril is near. But, what happens when we feel the threat of danger, but there’s no actual hazard to be found? Simply put, it’s not good. Stress causes our bodies to release a hormone called cortisol into our bloodstream, and over time, the constant fight or flight response wreaks havoc on our bodies as an over-abundance of cortisol inundates our system. Too much cortisol can lead to anxiety, depression, headaches, heart disease, diabetes, muscle weakness, memory issues, and a host of other negative health issues. And, it leaves most people asking the question: What can be done to ease the burden?
Serving in both the United States Air Force and as a deputy with the Madison County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO), Chris O’Brian has witnessed first-hand just how panic attacks and stress can impact the lives of first responders and military personnel. A resident of Madison County, he attended Aucilla Christian Academy and North Florida Community College, where he graduated in 1987 with his Associates of Arts degree. Upon exiting the Air Force in 1992 after four years of service, he went into the corporate world and raised his family. In 2010 he completed the Law Enforcement Academy and joined the MCSO, eventually joining the department’s K9 Unit. Chris’s K9 counterpart, Onyx, holds an impeccable reputation with MCSO. Credited with several apprehensions, numerous successful tracking pursuits, and assisting in getting vast amounts of narcotics off the streets of Madison County, Onyx was never just a dog. He was a partner in every sense of the word; along for the ride, whatever that ride might entail. One shift saw Chris and Onyx involved in a high speed pursuit, ending in a shootout where the criminals attempted to flee on foot and Onyx aided in their apprehension. Throughout his career Onyx sustained injuries which would eventually lead to his official retirement from the K9 unit.
When Onyx retired, Chris began to become more and more enamored with the process of how the dogs were trained for service. He reached out
to Jeff Minder, owner and CEO of the nationally acclaimed company, Top Tier K9, to learn as much as he could about what it takes to get a dog from average to top tier level. He completed all of the requirements needed to become a trainer, eventually making it to the level of Master trainer. It was during this time that Chris’s company, Forgotten Coast K9, came to fruition. The company’s goal was originally to provide pet training services, and while he was seeing success with that venture, he felt that he was being led down a different path.
Enter, David Eastabrooks. David and Chris met during the Law Enforcement Academy, and their friendship is one that has been a mooring for both men through the ebbs and flows of life. “David is a true American hero,” Chris said speaking of Eastabrooks. “He is the epitome of what you would want from someone serving our country. He’s that guy.”
David saw more than his fair share of action during his twenty one years of service with the United States Army’s 75th Ranger Regiment. If you’ve seen the Hollywood blockbuster Black Hawk Down, you saw just a small fraction of what life was like for David during that time. Suffice to say that those experiences left him with more emotional baggage than he could carry some days, and he soon found himself suffering from severe Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Not one for labels, it wasn’t until he was speaking with a doctor at the VA hospital, that he realized just what he was dealing with. “I wasn’t sad, I was flat. I just had no motivation,” David remembers.
Unbeknownst to him, Chris had been training Rex, a young pup that Chris was planning to keep for himself. However, as Chris continued speaking with David, it became evident that Rex could provide just the solace the retired veteran needed. “I told him, ‘You need a dog.’” Chris laughed as he recalled David’s reply, “He told me that he and his wife already had four dogs and they didn’t need another one.” It took a little convincing (and a couple of Godwinks), but soon Rex found his forever home with the Eastabrooks.
Just prior to David and Rex being united, David was fighting a major depressive episode, most days finding it difficult to get out of bed. Within days of receiving Rex, and getting the benefit of having a true service dog, David began living again instead of existing. He was taking down an old fence on his property and assembling a new one. He organized his garage. ”He became David again,” Chris stated. Seeing the remarkable change that Rex evoked in David caused Chris to re-evaluate the mission of what he felt he was being called to do with Forgotten Coast K9. “Prior to this, I had never seen a true service dog. It really opened my eyes to what a service dog could provide.” Inspired by his mother, Linda O’Brian, a registered nurse who served the community in varying capacities for fifty-seven years, Chris knew that this new-found mission was what he was called to do.
Chris set out to make Forgotten Coast K9 into an official nonprofit organization, with the goal of connecting as many veterans as possible with an authentic service dog. Together, Forgotten Coast K9 and Top Tier K9 joined forces to create Build A Battle Buddy, a 30-week program wherein the participants are taught how to select and train a dog of their own. First and foremost, both Chris and Jeff want to ensure that each participant is fully invested. “We want to know that they have skin in the game, so we do ask them to cover a small portion of the cost. We want to know they’re actually going to show up and be part of the process,” Chris mentioned. “If they need help with fundraising, I’ll go to their city and help them,” Chris offered in response to being asked how the individual might come up with that amount of money.

So, just how much does it cost to train a service dog through the Build A Battle Buddy program? Approximately $21,000 ($5,000 of which is paid for by the veteran/participant). This is a far cry from the over $25,000 that a former national program was charging. Jeff Minder of Top Tier K9 is so passionate about the project that he’s covering half of the cost of the schooling for each class group. Because he is a service disabled veteran himself, and also the father of a disabled veteran, he has a genuine appreciation for the benefits provided by the dogs he trains. Speaking of his son - he’s the proud owner of one of the service dogs himself, and has donated his own money to the program. Eastabrooks has also reached into his own pocket to help fund the mission that has given him so much.
There is definite cause for excitement, too. With an initial plan to begin classes in October, the start date for the first class has been able to be pushed up. So far up, in fact, that the first class is set to begin on July 10. This is largely due to the incredible amount of donations the program has seen thus far. On May 22, a fundraiser was held in Madison at the C&D Bistro during which the attendees came together to donate $11,000 in the
four hour window of the event. The good news doesn’t end there either. Donations continue to come in, now totaling in the $14,000 range from Madison County alone. As with any nonprofit organization, donations remain important to the overall infrastructure of the program. It goes without saying, the program cannot run without them. With this in mind, various fundraising events are a huge part of what Chris spends his time planning and implementing. “We have four major fundraising events over the next four weeks. Two are in Nashville (Tennessee), one’s in Valdosta, and one’s in Orlando.”
Don’t worry - if you’d like to donate, but can’t make it to an event, you can find them online at www.forgottencoastk9. org with options to pay using Venmo (@forgottencoastk9) and CashApp ($forgottencoastk9).
“Our goal is really to impact the number 22,” Chris explained. “The number 22 is a big deal within the law enforcement and military communities.” On average, 22 men and women end their life every day as a result of dealing with mental health issues stemming from service. “I’ve been able to work with Jeff and some of my bigger investors so that we can gear up to offer a new class every four weeks. With each class having between seven to 10 spots, that’s anywhere from 84 to 120 people a year!” He went on to state, “If we can help in getting that number 22 down, that’s what we want to do.” And, it doesn’t begin and end with helping only veterans.
Eleven-year-old Allison Martinez was non-verbal for the first nine years of her life, until she was united with her service dog, Delbert. Her dad, Brian Martinez, recalls when the two first met face to face. “From the moment they brought him out, immediately, she completely changed. Her whole way of life changed, and within two minutes, she was talking with Jeff and the other staff members. She was fist-bumping them.”
Chris, too, fondly recalls the day when one of his dogs touched the life of this special child, leaving an impact that wouldn’t soon be forgotten. “I can never tell this story without getting emotional,” he expressed. Allison’s life did change that day. The little girl who was barely able to communicate with her own family went on to place first in her class and second in the school for the Tropicana Speech contest; a truly extraordinary feat.
In his own words, Chris “abhors the limelight.” “It’s not about me. None of it’s about me. I’m just so blown away and so humbled by it all.” Speaking with him, it’s abundantly clear that he has caught the bug; the kindness bug. “I’m so excited for a year from now. I can’t imagine what we’re going to look like in a year from now.” The enthusiasm is not without warrant. It is evident that great things are most assuredly on the horizon for Chris and Forgotten Coast K9. It’s hard to talk with him and not catch that same kindness bug that will have you searching your own heart for ways in which you can make a difference. Isn’t that what life is really about? Leaving your area a little brighter than you found it? After all, as Anne Frank so eloquently stated, “No one has ever become poor by giving.”