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Fallen Marine's Family Adopts His Best Friend
(February 6, 2011) |
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| LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (2/3/2011 - AFNS) --
"Whatever is mine is his," Marine Corps Pfc. Colton W. Rusk
wrote about Eli, his military working dog, in the final days
of their deployment in Afghanistan. On Feb. 3, Private
Rusk's family helped prove his words true when they adopted
the black Labrador retriever in a retirement and adoption
ceremony at the military working dog school here. |
After 20-year-old Private Rusk was killed Dec. 6 in
Helmand province, Afghanistan, by Taliban sniper
fire, Marines officials told Darrell and Kathy Rusk,
his parents, that Eli, his infantry explosives
detector dog, crawled on top of their son to protect
him after he was shot. The Rusks drove to Lackland
Air Force Base from their home in Orange Grove,
Texas, along with their sons, 22-year-old Cody and
12-year-old Brady; Private Rusk's aunt, Yvonne Rusk;
and Jan Rusk and Katy and Wayne O'Neal, Private
Rusk's grandparents.
Marine Staff Sgt. Jessy
Eslick of the Department of Defense Military Working
Dog Research and Development Section praised Eli as
"a dog that brought Marines home to their families,"
as he handed the leash to the family. Eli
immediately began licking Mrs. Rusk's palms and fell
into the arms of his former handler's father.
"In his last letter we got the day before we |
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The family of a fallen
Marine greets Eli, his bomb-sniffing military
working dog, at a retirement and adoption ceremony
held at the Military Working Dog School at Lackland
Air Force Base, Texas, Feb. 3, 2011. Eli and his
handler, Pfc. Carlton Rusk were in Afghanistan when
the Marine was killed by Taliban sniper fire Dec. 6,
2010. Department of Defense officials granted the
Rusk family permission to adopt Eli following his
“retirement from the U.S. Marine Corps.” U.S. Air
Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III |
buried him, at the very top was a little smudge that
said 'Eli's kisses,'" said Mrs. Rusk, who wore a
two-sided pendant with a photo of her son on one
side and another snapshot of him with Eli on the
other. "He thought whatever was Colton's was Eli's.
"Like Colton said, 'what's mine is his,'" she
said. "We're Colton's family, so it's just right
that we're Eli's family now."
Eli, who was
trained in the military working dog program at
Lackland AFB, is reportedly the second military
working dog the Marines discharged to permit
adoption by a fallen handler's family. Cpl. Dustin
J. Lee's family adopted his German shepherd, Lex,
after the Quitman, Miss., Marine died from wounds he
received in a mortar attack in Al Anbar province,
Iraq, on March 21, 2007. The corporal's family
worked for nine months with an online petition and
congressional help.
Mrs. Rusk said her
family didn't have as many obstacles in their quest
to adopt Eli. Texas Gov. Rick Perry started the
process of working with the Marines on the dog's
discharge, and Scooter Kelo, who trained Eli and
also taught Private Rusk on working with the dog,
also worked on making the adoption possible.
"It gets our mind off the sadness of losing Colton,"
Mrs. Rusk said, "just knowing we're going to have a
little piece of Colton in Eli. I just wished he
could talk and tell us some stories. Just to know
we're going to be able to share the love we have for
our son with something that he loved dearly."
Private Rusk joined the Marines after he
graduated from Orange Grove High School, and
committed himself to the Marines the same week that
his best friend, Lance Cpl. Justin Rokohl, lost both
legs in southern Afghanistan. Private Rusk deployed
to Afghanistan on his 20th birthday, with Eli, as
part of the 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment at Camp
Pendleton, Calif.
"He wanted to be a Marine
since he was 10 years old," his mother said. "We
talked to him about maybe going to college first,
but he said he had to fight for his country first."
Private Rusk often told his parents how dogs
like Eli were well-trained at the DOD Military
Working Dog School at Lackland AFB, and in South
Carolina, where he was trained as an improvised
explosive device detector dog handler. |
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Brady Rusk, 12, gets
somber kiss from Eli, a bomb-sniffing military
working dog, during a retirement and adoption
ceremony Feb. 3, 2011, at Lackland Air Force Base,
Texas. The Labrador retriever was assigned to
Brady's older brother, Marine Pfc. Colton Rusk who
was killed Dec. 6, 2010 in Afghanistan by Taliban
sniper fire. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt.
Bennie J. Davis III |
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"We've had dogs
all of our lives," Mr. Rusk said. "Since all of the
boys were babies, they had one. Colton was probably
the better handler of the bunch. When he went to
train in South Carolina, he said, 'Dad, we don't
know how to train dogs. These dogs here will bring
you a beer, they'll open the can for you, but
sometimes they'll drink it for you, too.' He said
that was how well-trained the dogs were, and he was
really amazed how much you can do with a dog once
you've worked with them."
The dog Private
Rusk liked to call "My boy, Eli," earned a
reputation for wanting to be wherever his handler
was. Eli didn't want to sleep on the ground; he
slept in Private Rusk's sleeping bag. They even ate
together outside after Private Rusk found out that
Eli wasn't allowed to eat in the chow hall.
"He told a story of when they were in the chow line
one time," Mr. Rusk said. "One of the Marines kicked
at |
the dog one time and told him to get the dog out.
Colton and the Marine got into a little scuffle.
They told Colton he could stay inside and leave the
dog outside, but from then on, Colton and Eli ate
outside. That's how tight he and the dog were."
The family met Eli once when they visited
Private Rusk at Camp Pendleton the week he deployed.
After the retirement and adoption ceremony, the
Rusks took Eli to their home on more than 20 acres
of land, which he will share with the family, as
well as their horses and three German shepherds.
Jan Rusk, Private Rusk's grandmother, said this
was another way to honor his memories, but it also
will help the family as they continue to cope with
their loss.
"Eli was a part of Colton, and
now they have a little part of Colton back," she
said. |
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By Randy Roughton
Defense Media Activity-San Antonio
Copyright 2011 | |
Tribute music video about fallen USMC PFC
Colton Rusk > Hero of
a Small Texas Town
Reprinted from
Air Force News
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