Mobley came to our family on Christmas Eve when our son Andrew was 14.
Andrew’s sister married and moved away. This left our entire family and especially Andrew very lonely. He kept asking for a Hound Dog. They were nearly impossible to find in Oregon at the time, so we had just about given up. Then my husband saw a post on Facebook from a former classmate who had moved to Huntsville, Alabama. She posted a lost Hound Dog that their family had taken in and they couldn’t keep any longer. They had a lakeside home near where these dogs were used for hunting. A common problem was that they would either get lost or left behind. Mobley was lost, hungry, and very gentle.
This friend knew that our family owned a local landmark restaurant and that we took our pets to work. When Jayson, my husband reached out to her she was surprised and was certain that Mobley would make a great Mascot for our business.
We began the process of working towards getting Mobley flown out to Oregon to be a gift for our son at Christmas. He would have arrived early, but there was a storm that made them go into the cellar, fortunately, Mobley was already in route to Oregon. We were so worried about him. Alone again in bad weather on airplanes and who knows what kind of conditions. He was held over in Seattle, WA and they called us to let us know that he was okay, and they were feeding him. What a relief. 2 more days and he would arrive.
We were told he would arrive at the cargo center for the Airport, so we had to make up a big white lie to get our 14-year-old son to come with us at 7:00 am to pick him up. We knew how much he loved his sister, so we told him we had a bed that was coming in and Dad needed his help to carry it. He reluctantly got up to help.
When we arrived at the airport, to pick up our new dog on Christmas Eve, he had no idea until he saw precious beautiful Mobley. They immediately bonded. It was the best Christmas present ever.
Mobley was a loyal dog. One of the best. He always stayed by our side. He went to our Hangar where we manage a non-profit restoring a B-17G Flying Fortress and there he made friends with over 200 volunteers, many of whom just needed a big hug. Mobley would greet our guests young and old. Everyone loved him. He was majestic in his beauty and proclaimed a bit of royalty in the way he carried himself.
I still cry when I think of Mobley because he gave us and so many others joy.