Junie’s Joy

Life Unleashed | Summer 2022
Junie’s Joy

Junie and Kids Companion Dog Merlot cuddling together.

Junie’s Joy

A boy, a dog, and a mom who wouldn’t give up.

Absolutely inseparable, five-year-old Junie and his dog, Merlot, jump on the trampoline, splash in the pool, climb trees, and run around the family farm. Despite his blindness, Junie fearlessly embraces the world around him.

But life wasn’t always happy for Junie.“This child is extremely aggressive,” the social worker once warned 24-year-old Destiny, an Army veteran and single person who chose to foster children, specifically severe cases. “This child bites—hard. He hits, he headbutts; you cannot approach this child. He’s blind, autistic, nonverbal, and he can’t walk. Doctors call him ‘feral.’”Destiny saw a two-year-old baby, alone and afraid. Calmly, she asked, “Do you want to let me hold you?” Junie clung to her as if she was his last hope.

“I just held him into my bones; no part of me ever wanted to let him go,” Destiny shares.

“He was desperate to feel safe. And I wanted nothing more than to let him feel safe.”

What a difference love makes. Junie went home with Destiny who was then caring for four other foster girls. She welcomed emergency placements and gave respite care to other foster families.

“I got attached to every single kid that came through my door,” she says. “Every goodbye was absolute heartbreak.” Destiny cared for 14 children in all, but Junie was different. She just couldn’t let him go.

After mountains of paperwork and biological family turmoil, Destiny finally adopted Junie. They moved to Florida near family and the farm, and through song, she helped Junie communicate and learn. After sharing in a Facebook group about their nature walks, she received an unexpected message from a Dogs Inc staff member about our Kids Companion Dogs for children with vision loss. As a result, Merlot soon joined this sweet family.

Junie only recently learned to talk, but he sings to Merlot all day long. “Merlot matches Junie’s personality to a tee,” Destiny says. “The two of them are so hyper, happy, and loving. And they’re both super snugglers. The two of them end up hugging each other to sleep. It’s adorable.”

“Merlot has given Junie a second person to be 100% comfortable and confident with,” she adds. “He’s learning that mom is not the only safe person in this world. He’s learning, ‘I can trust this dog—and I can be someone that this dog can trust.’ They are going to be best friends for years to come.”

This feature first appeared in the Summer 2022 issue of Life Unleashed. Read more articles here.

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Watch the video version of “Junie’s Joy.”

Check out the video version of Junie’s heart-warming story in this episode of Dogs of Destiny.

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Junie and Kids Companion Dog Merlot title image from Dogs of Destiny

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