Passenger on way to comfort Maine victims with dog makes emotional in-flight announcement
A man who brings his golden retriever to comfort mass shooting survivors took over the PA system on a Southwest flight headed to Lewiston, Maine, this week to share messages of love and support written by his fellow passengers.
In an emotional video uploaded by TikTok user @felishaleesphotography on Monday, Andy Garmezy announced to the flight that he's a volunteer with National Crisis Response Canines and that he and his dog Cooper were on their way to Lewiston at the request of L.L. Bean. Some of the company's employees were impacted by the mass shooting that killed 18 people and wounded 13 others this week.
With the blessing of flight attendants, Garmezy used the plane's PA system to read aloud notes collected from passengers who wrote to the people in Lewiston.
One of them read: "In a time of pain, I hold you in my thoughts."
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Airplane passengers also wrote notes for Uvalde community
Garmezy told the passengers that he and Cooper had deployed to Uvalde, Texas, following a mass shooting that killed 19 fourth-graders and two teachers at Robb Elementary School on May 24, 2022.
"When I went to Uvalde, the flight attendants and crew were so taken with us being on the flight that they spontaneously asked the passengers to write some notes that we could give to the school and to the kids," Garmezy said as he began getting choked up. "From the bottom of my heart I wanted to thank the passengers and Cooper does, too."
What else did passengers write to the Lewiston community?
One note read by an emotional Garmezy said that "these are dark days."
"But always remember that the sun will shine again," the passenger wrote. "Keep your loved ones' memory alive. Remember their beauty. It's their lives that will hopefully keep you moving in the right direction."
Another passenger wrote: "In a world where there seems to be no love, know that Southwest flight 1843 is full of people praying for all the families who went through this horrific act of hate. Love and prayers for all these in Lewiston, Maine."
The user who captured the moment during the flight from Nashville to Boston shared a photo of Cooper at the end of the video and wrote that it was an emotional experience for everyone onboard.
The video had about 250,000 views as of Wednesday afternoon.
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What are the National Crisis Response Canines?
The National Crisis Response Canines is a volunteer-run organization that aims to “relieve suffering, aid in recovery, and help people affected by crisis, trauma or disaster,” according to the organization's website.
Garmezy said that Lewiston is the fifth mass casualty event that he and Cooper have been asked to respond to.
Outdoor goods realtor L.L. Bean requested the organization’s assistance “to be a resource for the community in the aftermath of the tragedy,” company spokesperson Jason Sulham told USA TODAY Tuesday.
L.L. Bean closed its flagship store, corporate headquarters, factories and other facilities in Maine during the search for the shooter. The company also clarified that no employees had been killed as a result of the mass shooting, contrary to what was said to passengers.
"(The National Crisis Response Canines) have been great and well received,” Sulham said.
National Crisis Response Canines hasn't responded to a request for comment from USA TODAY.