Flight attendant reunites soldiers, dogs

ST. LOUIS — Derrek Green’s eyes lit up as the black Lab galloped across the airport corridor. He bent down, threw his arms out and embraced Zeva, the tail-wagging, retired military dog he had to leave behind two years earlier.

Molli Oliver’s eyes filled with tears.

Oliver is a United Airlines flight attendant who has taken it upon herself to reunite retired military dogs and their former handlers. Her mission started last year when she struck up a conversation with a soldier still hurting five years after parting ways with his military canine.

“I said, ‘Well, where is the dog? I’ll get him for you,’ ” Oliver recalled.

It was the start of a passion for Oliver. The recent reunion of Green and Zeva in El Paso, Texas, was her fifth homecoming.

“It was emotional,” Green, a 26-year-old Army staff sergeant, said of getting Zeva back. “At one point, I almost started crying.”

Oliver, 65, of Los Angeles said she has had a deep bond with the military — several members of her family have served — and she has a love for dogs.

She said she was heartbroken by Sgt. Andrew Mulherron’s story as she flew with Marines heading for overseas deployment in April 2015. Mulherron was the first handler for another black Lab, Boone, starting in 2009. Their bond was deepened by Boone receiving a medal for detecting 11 confirmed explosive devices in Afghanistan.

Mulherron eventually settled in California, and Boone went to another handler. Oliver tracked down Boone to Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., and was able to get permission to fly him to California.

For that first reunion and the next three, Oliver paid for the flights and other costs herself. News about her efforts led to donations, which funded Zeva’s trip to El Paso. Any cost is worth it to see the look on a soldier’s face when he has his dog back, Oliver said.

“It’s overwhelming for them,” she said.

Doug Miller, working dog manager for the Department of Defense, said the military typically has about 1,700 dogs working in all branches, with another 800 to 1,000 in kennel for training, awaiting assignment or for medical reasons. Most dogs are used for patrol and detection of drugs and explosives, Miller said.

During a dog’s working life, the animal typically goes through several handlers. When the dog is retired, the final handler usually gets first dibs. Other times, a past handler has made it clear he or she wants to adopt. If multiple handlers want the dog, the commander chooses “based on the best interest of the dog,” Miller said.

Zeva, like Boone, was trained to detect bombs. She first teamed with Green in 2013.

The military had other plans for both of them. Green was sent to a combat engineering unit in 2014. Zeva never really took to the training and remained kenneled in Fort Leonard Wood.

“She definitely is not a military working dog,” Green said of Zeva. “She’d rather relax on your couch than go out and look for bombs.”

Green, now based in Fort Bliss, Texas, never forgot Zeva and secured permission to adopt the dog.

Oliver flew to St. Louis, drove 130 miles to the Army base to pick up Zeva and flew her to Texas, where the dog now lives with Green, his wife, their three children and another Lab.

Oliver said the first five reunions are only the beginning.

“We’re trying to help as many as we can,” she said.