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Benjamin O’Donnell (IA)

Benjamin O’Donnell 1135545
CCF 1107
PO Box 96777
Las Vegas, NV. 89193

This picture is of me during an event we had here at the Fort Dodge Correctional Facility, for the Leader Dog for the Blind program. The event was called Puppy Days it was when all the inmate dog trainers put on a demonstration of the progress our dogs. The ages of the dogs ranged from 1 year to brand new at 4 months, so it was often a very amusing chaos. That year’s theme was Star Wars, and not only did I have my Leader Dog that I was training Simba, the big black lab I had made a RTD2 shirt for him, but I was also in charge of organizing a skit for all of the staff that decided to get their own dogs involved with the event. We were the woks, and the ugly little thing in my lap is my little buddy Rex who really didn’t need anything to make him look like an Ewok. The facility no longer has the Leader Dog program here but while it was here, I raised six fantastic hounds:
Simba -who became a therapy dog and works in a hospital.
Gracie -who came to me as a neglected/rehabilitation project that no one had any expectations for, she now is a full Leader Dog for a gentleman that lives in Spain. My pup is bilingual, who knew.
Kandi -she is a very, very wound-up pup that was adopted as a pet for a family with three kids. In this situation we like to say that she got a job chasing chickens.
Ernie -he is one of the chillest hounds you will ever see, but he was also huge and also became a therapy dog slobbering on sick kids.
Wendal – he is one of the smartest hounds I have ever seen and now is a Leader Dog for a lady here in the USA.
Ivan- he was lovingly nicknamed “Ivan the Terrible” by all of us because he was a handful but to all of our surprise, he too became a Leader Dog for someone here in the USA.

Things about me: I went to prison in my early 20’s and am now in my mid 40’s. As a kid I really did want to be the bad guy of the story. Today I am the facilitator for the secular community in the Fort Dodge Correctional Facility. This defines me. have given my entire life to living and teaching others the ideals of living a life in the pursuit of knowledge, reason and self- responsibility. I read, write, draw, and wait to see if there will ever be a next chapter for me. I f there is not, I’ve grown into a person that I am proud to continue being.