Adoptions at Work
Story by Claudia Harrell
When Normal Allen of Sparta, NJ, had a problem with his phone service, he called Embarq. This quick call soon served to change the life of his family forever.
In talking with the Embarq customer service rep, Randall Melton, Mr. Allen was so impressed with his ability to take care of the problem, that Mr. Allen began to ask questions about where Mr. Melton, lived, and what he did when he was not working.
At this point, Mr. Allen found that Randall volunteered at a no kill dog shelter here in Scotland Neck. (downeastanimalrefuge.org)
Mr. Allen decided to call Mr. Melton at home, and then began to talk about looking for a puppy for his children.
This is where the story gets really interesting! Randall told Mr. Allen about a puppy we had named Walker. Randall sent pictures of Walker, and soon Mr. Allen was smitten with this dog.
While Mr. Allen wanted the puppy, transport from NC to New Jersey proved to be a real challenge. Although Mr. Allen (Norman) sent credit card info, and was willing to pay to have the puppy flown out of NC, the weather turned cold, and too cold for flying a puppy.
After several attempts to get the puppy flown out, another method had to be found. That involved Rainbow Rescue in Roanoke Rapids. They regularly take many puppies to this area, and were willing to in include Walker in one of the transports.
That got the ball rolling! Walker was successfully transported by van to a nearby area and met with the Allen family.
We have had many e-mails and calls from the family. The children, are the most important. They will say things like "thank you so much for our Walker--He is the best dog ever". "We love him sooo much". They have taught him to sit, shake, come, and do whatever they want him to do. They ask if it is ok to call us back and let us know how he is doing.
These children are wonderful--they love this dog so much!
Remember, it all started with a call about a phone problem, and led to a new member of the family.
Be careful if you call Embarq--you might get more than you bargained for!
Mr. Norman, says, many thanks to Randall Melton for taking the time to talk to him, solve his phone problem, and taking time, off duty to help him get this wonderful puppy.
These are the stories that keep us doing what we do. One dog at a time. DEAR (Down East Animal Refuge)