Published - September 2,  2001

AVIANO Air Base, Italy — One of the longest continually serving members of the American military community in Aviano was remembered fondly Thursday by his colleagues. Not many of those present had extended conversations with him. In fact, because of his nature, they were usually instructed to keep well away. But that didn’t mean there wasn’t respect.

And paying respects to Roy, a military working dog, was what Thursday’s ceremony was about. Some might argue that a ceremony for a dog — even one that had served with honors in Aviano since 1995 — is a little over the top.

Not Staff Sgt. Philip Fortin. Or Tech Sgt. Michael Howard. Or Tech Sgt. Leo Castro. "I think it all comes down to understanding it," said Fortin, who was Roy’s handler from September 2000 until the dog was put to sleep in June after developing cancer. "People just take the dogs for granted. They’re not just tools."

Dog handlers work with their partners for hundreds — if not thousands — of hours, patrolling all areas of a facility and coming into contact with those in trouble and those causing trouble. Howard said he and Castro are longtime dog handlers and believers in tradition. One long-established tradition is honoring dogs who served their communities well.

"When we knew he was going to be put down, we knew we had to do something," he said. But temporary duty assignments kept those who wanted to participate away from Aviano for several months, thus the service Thursday.

A few dozen members of the 31st Security Forces Squadron paid their respects, listening to readings about Roy’s personal history, the military working dog story, an invocation, a 21-gun salute and Taps.

And just why should Roy be remembered?

"He’s the dog that everyone wanted to have," Castro said. "He was, in all respects, the perfect drug dog." Howard said Roy was equally effective at crowd control. "It was just a presence," he said. "He’d just walk in and you just knew [the disturbance] was over." 

Fortin, who no longer works with dogs, said his fourth canine partner was something special. "He was definitely the Alpha male," he said.

The ceremony would help the grieving process, he said. He thought of his former partner constantly for weeks after Roy was put to sleep on June 22. "Every now and then, I’d forget and go and open the back door [of the car]," he said. "He wasn’t there, of course."