Justin Rollins, Brittney Murray, Hero

Paratrooper's girl proves love
conquers all

By Judi McLeod

Friday, May 25, 2007

Brittney Murray, the girl Army Spc. Justin Rollins planned to propose to on his next visit home, is very special: Brittney of the broken heart, touched the hearts of Americans and she touched them on the eve of Memorial Day Weekend.

Rollins, killed in Samarra on March 5, never made it home.

When this inspirational story started out, all the family and girlfriend of the 22-year-old paratrooper had left of him was a picture taken the night before his death that they cherished. The picture showed Justin nuzzling a female pup, so full of life; so typical of him.

But for his loved ones who will never forget Justin, the story began rather than ended there.

Two months ago, Army Spc. Justin Rollins fell in love with a puppy that he found in Iraq. The dog was flown to his family in Newport.

It would be a 6,000-mile journey to bring the dog from Iraq, but Brittney knew that love conquers all.

Nothing is impossible if you are not willing to give up.

"It was the last bit of happiness Justin had," said Brittney.

Rollins and some other soldiers from the 82nd Airborne must have been elated when they found the puppies outside an Iraqi police station on March 4. Not allowed to bring them back into their barracks, they stopped to cuddle with the puppies. The next day Justin was killed in a roadside bombing.

Brittney sought help to start the search to find the short-haired dog, named Hero, and never gave up.

This photo provided by Rep. Paul Hodes office shows Army Spc. Justin Rollins with a puppy he found in Iraq. Rollins was killed by a roadside bomb March 5 in Samarra. Ever since his death, Rollins' family has longed to bring Hero the dog to the United States. On Friday, May 25, 2007, they got their wish. (AP Photo/ Courtesy Rep. Paul Hodes )

Among all the Memorial Day Weekend travelers, Hero arrived in tail wagging style at Kennedy International Airport in New York on Thursday night. After a brief pit stop at the vets, she arrived in New Hampshire overnight.

With her floppy ears, the mostly white-with-liver-spots-along-muzzle-and paws puppy was a star at Hode's office. All gangly paws and enthusiasm, Hero is 15 pounds of puppy affection.

Whether the mixed-breed puppy is the same one in the original photo mattered about as much as when she christened Hode's office carpet.

Hero's very name is a touching tribute to Justin, whose parents say, was an animal lover at home and overseas.

"We have a dog and three cats at home. When he was little, they all were on his bed," said his mother Rhonda.

Justin Rollins was buried in Arlington National Cemetery with a baseball signed by Red Sox player David Ortiz, who met him last summer shortly before his unit was deployed.

"He really did believe in what he was fighting for," Rhonda Rollins said of her paratrooper son. "I think he'd be thrilled there was a positive story from the negative thing that happened to us...He was such a happy-go-lucky guy."

Thanks to his girl, Justin's family finally got to hold one of the last things their son held.

Thanks to Justin's girl, comes a gift to everybody on this Memorial Day Weekend--a gift that touches the human heart.

Canada Free Press founding editor Most recent by Judi McLeod is an award-winning journalist with 30 years experience in the print media. Her work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck. Judi can be reached at: judi@canadafreepress.com