Tribute to service dog Addie is an illustrated labor of love
Donna Luber was in for a big surprise when her 6-year-old granddaughter said she wanted to read a new book to her.
The 85-year-old Mequon woman looked at the cover. “I almost fainted,” she said.
The children’s book is called “Where’s Addie?” and Donna is the author. It says so right there on the cover. But Donna was seeing it for the very first time.
This is the story of a lost service dog — a true tale — she thought would never be published. She wrote it all down right after it happened in 2000, but gave up after trying in vain to find a publisher.
Her three sons, Mike, Scott and Howard, surprised her recently with the finished book that combines her words with the beautiful artwork of a local illustrator named Ryan Kennedy.
A couple years ago, the sons fished her dusty typed pages from a drawer and then contacted David Gawlik, a publisher who owns Caritas Communi-
cations in Mequon. He knew Ryan and got him involved in the project.
Perhaps most impressive is that Mike and Scott, who led the effort, both have muscular dystrophy and are paralyzed from the neck down. Addie, a golden retriever, was Mike’s beloved service dog who provided emotional support and helped him open doors, flip light switches and such.
If you were following local news back in the summer of 2000, you may already have heard the story shared in this book. Spooked by a thunderstorm, 12-year-old Addie bolted from her home in Glendale and was on the run for eight excruciating days.
Spurred by media coverage and thousands of lost-dog posters, the community pitched in to look for Addie. Someone even hired a helicopter to search from the air.
Finally, Addie wandered into a gas station in Mike’s neighborhood, drawn in by a van that looked like his, and the owner’s son recognized the dog from the posters. Its fur was matted and dirty, but the reunion with Mike was joyous.
The story is preserved forever between the covers of the 30-page paperback book.
“We wanted to do it for her,” Mike said, referring to his mother. “And the next biggest reason was to educate kids about disabilities, as well as service dogs.”
Mike, 53, is a psychologist working at Jewish Family Services in Milwaukee. He and his longtime partner, Lisa, have three children. He has used a wheelchair since he was 11 and requires around-the-clock nursing care to make sure his tracheotomy tube keeps working properly and providing the oxygen he needs. He used a microphone and small amplifier to speak to me.
Scott, 56, used to work as an accountant and now is facilities and operations director at Independence First. He also uses a wheelchair. He shares a residence in Mequon with Mike’s family. The oldest brother, Howard, is a doctor in Phoenix. He does not have muscular dystrophy. The firstborn child of Donna and her husband Chuck, Marti Sue, died at age 6.
Donna, Chuck and their boys are thrilled with “Where’s Addie?” Ryan, the illustrator, said it took about a year to get the artwork just right with all the tweaks and changes. This was his first children’s book.
“We found out how time-consuming it is to do a book,” Scott said, “but we finally did it and I think it looks fabulous.”
He’ll never forget the moment a few weeks ago when 6-year-old granddaughter Addison — Mike’s daughter who is nicknamed Addie — was prompted to present the book to Donna.
“She looked at it and she said, ‘Oh, my book!’ She got teary-eyed and would not let go of the book,” he said.
“I’m not a writer,” said Donna, who was a kindergarten teacher years ago. “I’m just a mother and grandmother. I put it away and forgot about it.”
Now she is giving the book away to family and friends. The first 100 copies that were printed are gone, so another 100 were ordered.
So far, 21 copies have sold for $12.95 on Amazon.com. You can order it that way, or stop in and buy one at Boswell Book Company on the east side or at Book World and the Learning Shop, both in Mequon.
Addie the dog lived to be 14 years old. Because of the constant assistance Mike receives from nurses, he did not request another service dog, though he and Lisa have had many dogs as pets.
“Not one dog has even come close or meant as much as Addie,” he said. “A service dog is just a whole different level of attachment and companionship than a pet.”