Marzo’s Legacy
It’s
a long shot.
Donald Jones is searching for something he doesn’t know if he’ll ever find. But he has to try.
Ten years ago, Donald and his wife Gabriel were visiting Rome and stopped at the Walmart for supplies. It was there that he saw something that would change their lives.
A man had a large basket and it was filled with little black puppies.
“They were only four weeks old,” Donald said. “There were about eight or 11 of them I can’t remember. But they were all black and they were covered with fleas. He was trying to find homes for all of them.”
The Joneses took one of those puppies home. It was March of 2010. They named the puppy Marzo, which is Spanish for March. They bought baby formula and Gabriel fed Marzo from a baby bottle.
“From the moment we adopted Marzo, and we learned that his Mama had been killed by a car, we became his new mama and papa,” Donald said. “My wife began feeding him with powder puppy milk, with a bottle. He drank a lot of that his first few weeks with us.”
For 10 years, Marzo was a blessing in the couple’s life. He died on Jan. 15, 2021, and now Donald and Gabriel are on an incredible quest to find Marzo’s siblings — those little puppies they saw in a Walmart parking lot a decade ago.
“The main thing we want people in Rome to know is that somewhere out there if Marzo’s brothers and sisters are still alive, or their puppies, is that those are very special dogs. They have so much potential and so much promise.”
The Joneses live in the South American nation of Colombia now, but 10 years ago they were living in Atlanta and were visiting Rome. Since then, their travels have taken them to destinations near and far, and all the while Marzo was their constant companion.
“He rode in airplanes, buses, trains, boats and he understood English and Spanish,” Donald said. “He learned to play soccer. “He had a bright orange ball that when we went to places where there were kids he would take his ball drop it at the feet of one of these kids. He would begin to bark to ask them to play soccer with him. He would block their shots. If the ball got past him he would immediately return with the ball, drop it at their feet and the game would continue. If there was more than one kid he would include all of the kids, taking turns with each. The parents were so surprised. These were some kids who were afraid of dogs. But after a while, all these kids had a new friend named Marzo.”
Marzo gave high fives, ate papaya at night, brought in his mom’s purse into the house each time she came home, and woke his papa up each morning when it was time to have breakfast.
Now, Donald and Gabriel are hoping they can find the families in and around Rome that may have adopted Marzo’s siblings. They believe some may still be alive or that some of them may have had puppies of their own. And if possible, they would like to adopt one.
“I know there’s a likelihood that some of them are still around Rome,” Donald said. “We were hoping to see if we could adopt one of Marzo’s relatives if that’s possible.”
But in addition to that, Marzo’s death has compelled the Joneses to reach out to ensure that those families know the great potential in their dogs.
“There’s so much love there,” Donald said. “If only you take the time to see it and to nurture it.”
The couple is even willing to offer a reward for information leading to Marzo’s siblings.
“We really want to find Marzo’s family,” Donald said. “Marzo was a part of our family so in a way, his siblings are a part of our family as well. We don’t want any of these dogs to miss out on the love they deserve.”
Donald cried as he made a plea to dog owners everywhere and particularly to those who may have adopted one of the little black puppies from a Walmart parking lot 10 years ago.
“Train them, teach them and they will give you back so much more,” he said. “Don’t neglect them, don’t abuse them. Love them and spend time with them. They laugh and cry and hurt just like we do. Marzo was so special because we cared enough to train him and love him. He bloomed.”
If you have information about any of the dogs that might be Marzo’s siblings, email