Just a few years ago, the chances of convincing Craig Hodgkins to talk in front of a room full of people effectively were nil.

That may have come as a surprise to those who heard him speak confidently and candidly on Nov. 10 at Collier’s Salute to Veterans Brunch.

Attired in his U.S. Marine Corps dress blues, Hodgkins described his life after serving in the military as basically having to cope with numerous physical and neurological problems that resulted in repeated surgeries, hearing and memory loss, lack of ability to sleep, and an ever-growing state of depression.

“I didn’t care anymore,” the Mt. Lebanon resident said. “I took myself and moved down into my basement, and all I did was sit there and work on music every day and stay away from anyone else.”

Eventually, he contemplated taking his own life to the point where he formulated a plan to make the suicide look like an accident.

Then he found Foxy.

Constantly with him at the Collier Community Center was his medical service dog, a purebred German shepherd that underwent nearly two years of training to help save human lives.

For example, Hodgkins cited Foxy’s ability to detect when he is suffering from the likes of seizures, heart ailments, night terrors and vertigo.

“She has picked up on my having internal bleeding that I didn’t know I had,” he said. “It ended up being taken care of pretty quickly. It wasn’t a big deal. But she recognized that.”

Another time, he took some medication to help him sleep, and it did the trick.

“About midnight, I feel paws on my chest and licking my face over and over again. I’m drowsy and I’m starting to wonder, why the hell are they testing the fire alarm? Oh, wait a minute. They don’t test the fire alarm at midnight,” Hodgkins said. “It was a fire in one of the apartments close to ours.”

Foxy developed those types of abilities through Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs Inc., a Florida nonprofit that provides the animals to veterans for free, even though breeding, training and associated costs have risen to roughly $29,000 per dog.

Providing considerable support for Guardian Angels’ mission is Western Pennsylvania-based Life Changing Service Dogs for Veterans. Bill Jeffcoat, the organization’s president, served in the Marines as a dog handler during the Vietnam War.

“We’ve paired 30 veterans with 30 dogs and have enough money for 30 more,” he said about the $1.7 million the group has raised since its founding in 2015.

He and Hodgkins also provided information about a Guardian Angels campus to be built in Robinson Township, Washington County, with the capacity to breed and train 50 to 60 dogs per year. Donations to Life Changing Service Dogs for Veterans have helped the cause substantially, as have federal and state grants, plus financial backing from the corporate world.

“It’s not just about saving my life. It has given me a life,” Hodgkins said about his pairing with Foxy, his constant companion. “I’m here speaking. I can actually tell every one of you, and not worry about being judged, that I was going to commit suicide. And it’s because of her.”

He asked Salute to Veterans attendees to view a video he made with Foxy, and to subscribe to the Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs channel. With a certain amount of subscriptions, he explained, the channel will start to be monetized.

“That money’s going directly back into Guardian Angels and service dogs,” he said.

For veterans in general, help with any number of issues is available around the clock by telephone.

During the Collier brunch, Matthew Romanishin, a suicide prevention case manger with VA Pittsburgh, spoke about the Veterans Crisis Line: “988, press 1 at the prompt.”

“This isn’t just for veterans. If you are a spouse, a family member of a veteran, you’re concerned about a loved one, that’s what that number is there for,” Romanishin said.

An Army veteran who served in Somalia and Haiti, he acknowledged a potential degree of difficulty.

“From Day One of boot camp, we’re trained — it’s reinforced — to kind of tough it out, push through, not be weak. There’s a lot of stigma that could possibly get in the way,” he said. “But I think more than anything, it takes courage to pick up that number and call.”

Other avenues of support can be provided by elected officials, including state Sen. Devlin Robinson, R-Bridgeville, who distributed a guide to benefits available for Pennsylvania veterans.

“Anything that we can do for all of you, you should be able to jump to the front of the line,” Robinson, who served in the Marine Corps, said. “We’re here for you. Please give us a call.”

For more information:

• Life Changing Service Dogs for Veterans, www.padogsforvets.org

• Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs Inc., www.medicalservicedogs.org

• Video of “Craig & Service Dog, Foxy,” www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6oAduI_ySU

• Veterans Crisis Line, www.veteranscrisisline.net

• State Sen. Devlin Robinson, senatordevlinrobinsonpa.com, 412-785-3070 or 412-643-3020

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