LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Veterans and first responders are the first to be called when there's a crisis. They're not usually the ones who ask for help.
Two men who served in different ways share how they have an unlikely hero.
As Thomas Rierdon walks through Veterans Memorial Park in Jeffersontown, it's hard not to think about his time overseas.
"While I was over there, we cleared some houses and did some things that I can't forget," Rierdon remembered.
He served in Iraq as a Marine combat medic.
"Especially now with this pullout of Afghanistan, it's affecting a lot of vets, whether it's Vietnam, Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan," he explained. "This is not the legacy. The legacy is that we spent 20 years over there fighting and doing what our country asked us to do, and we did it. We did it well."
With the news of the military withdrawal from Afghanistan, there's one thing helping him through it.
"He's non-judgmental," he said. "He doesn't judge me. He's there when I'm there."
He's talking about his service dog, Boomer.
"He's always gotta be touching me some way or another, and it's comforting," he explained. "Even as a combat vet, and you can't get those images out of your head. He seems to help mitigate it. Granted, they're not gone. They're still there. He just helps me deal with it and divert my attention."
When Thomas first came home, he barely was able to leave the house.
"When I came home, I became a recluse," he said. "I didn't go outside. I didn't do stuff with my family. I didn't have a family then, so I was an introvert. I stayed in my house in a dark room. I didn't watch TV because it was too triggering."
And when he became a dad, he missed out on a lot.
"I have three kids, and I never went to a single ball game until I had him," he said. "It's allowed me to be part of the family as before I wasn't part of the family. I was just existing."
When he was first introduced to Kassi Cawood from Dogs Helping Heroes, even he wasn't sure about it.
"I was skeptical," Rierdon said. "How's a dog gonna help a grown man with PTSD issues?"
"They might clench their fists or they might put their hands to their head and the dog picks up on it they help with night terrors," Kassi Cawood, Dogs Helping Heroes, explained. "We have first responders that their way of coping with all the stuff that they see everyday is they go work more shifts."
Kent Monohan is one of those first responders.
"I served in the fire service for 44 years," Monohan said. "I've always been a firefighter, but during that at the same time I worked for ambulance services and I worked for the sheriff's department as a medic for the SWAT team.
"You get overwhelmed. After I got sick, it's like I told my son it feels like I lost my superpower of helping everybody. Now, I'm the one that needs help."
Phoenix is now his superhero.
"It's very very difficult for veterans and first responders to ask for help," he explained. "We're used to being the people that come to help. We provide the help. We make organization out of chaos and it's really hard when we don't do that and it's very,very difficult to be the one asking for help."
Dogs Helping Heroes is looking for people who need a service dog. You can fill out the application here or call them at (812) 329-0244.
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