Sully the Celebrity Dog
Life is an adventure. Every time we step out the door, life offers us something new and fascinating; so long as we pay attention.
One such adventure, albeit brief, occurred for Med Maps owners Barry and Cathy Perelman in April of 2019. Med Maps had been awarded a project to update the campus maps and interactive mapping tools for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, MD, the largest such facility in the country. This prompted a visit to conduct a walk-through prior to Med Maps beginning design work.
Standing in the lobby of the administration building (the President Zone), they caught a glimpse of a true American celebrity/hero. Waiting with his handler to board an elevator was Sully, a yellow Labrador Retriever, who served President George H W Bush up until his death on the 30th of November 2018. For the briefest of moments, Barry and Cathy were eye to eye with a true hero and noted celebrity. Then he was gone, headed on his rounds to visit with veterans and first responders suffering from PTSD, wounds from deployment and disabilities.
Sully had become a well-known pooch in a very short time. Photographs of him laying in wait next to President Bush’s casket during the memorial service brought him to the attention of millions of Americans. While Med Maps works to help veterans, and others, find their way around and through Walter Reed, Sully helps those same veterans find their way from despair and discouragement to hope and healing.
Sully in the Capitol Rotunda keeping vigil beside his friend, President George H W Bush.
Numerous photographs of the yellow Labrador keeping vigil with other mourners made him an instant sensation with people around the world. However, it was the wish of President Bush that his canine companion continue his career of service in a place dear to the hearts of countless wounded warriors. Walter Reed Medical Center would be the new home for Sully the dog, now known to millions the world over for his loyalty and steadfastness to an American president.
However, there was a period of training for Sully to undergo prior to his own new adventure. He was transitioning from a support dog to that of a facility dog. Instead of being the constant companion of the President, he would soon be a companion to thousands of military personnel and first responders. To prepare for his new assignment, Sully was transported to the campus of America’s Vet Dogs in Smithtown, NY, a facility dedicated to training and placing highly-skilled service and guide dogs. America’s Vet Dogs is dedicated to training service dogs for veterans, active-duty military and first responders dealing with disabilities.
When Sully was spied by Barry and Cathy, he had been on the job at Walter Reed for just over a month, yet already he drew crowds and smiles at every stop throughout the huge facility. His commissioning ceremony as a Navy Hospital Corpsman Second Class complete, and as the newest member of a seven canine team of facility dogs with a new uniform tailored from that of his handler, Steven Hutchins, Sully was out and about on his presidentially appointed mission bringing encouragement and joy to those in desperate need of support. As Steven said, “Sully has a unique ability to relate to service members, just unlike anything I’ve even seen before.” In ways that few people can ever match, he leaves smiles and hope in his wake.
Sully’s commissioning ceremony at Walter Reed. Holding his leash is his trainer from America’s Vet Dogs, Valerie Cramer.
Sully has been a champion of the critical work of service dogs in the lives of men and women who are, themselves, living lives of service. His calm demeanor and accommodating personality have, along with his ability to inspire hope, made him a true hero to all those he works with and around. Still, he’s more than a four footed hero; Sully is also a full-blooded celebrity.
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals named Sully as the recipient of the 2019 ASPCA Public Service Award for demonstrating outstanding dedication to President Bush and veterans at Walter Reed.
He was awarded the CW Network Dog of the Year designation for 2019, was seen on many local and national television news broadcasts, at NFL games and even met his namesake, Captain Chesley Sullenberger III who is, himself, a celebrity hero. Sullenberger safely landed his disabled US Airways flight 1459 in the frigid waters of the Hudson River in January of 2009. The calm and professional actions of the former Air Force Academy graduate and F-4 fighter pilot saved the lives of 155 passengers and crew on the Airbus A320. February of 2019 saw one hero meet another on the set of NBC’s Today Show where Jenna Bush Hager, granddaughter to President Bush, made the introductions.
Corpsman 2nd class Sullyhwbush meets Captain Chesley Sullenberger III on the set of Today with Jenna Bush Hager making the introductions.
The crowning accolade, however, came from the George H W Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas where, on Monday 2nd December 2019, a statue of the well-traveled pup was unveiled. The tribute to the loyal companion to the President by noted artist Susan Behary, will be a permanent reminder of the loyalty and permanence of these loving creatures who are called upon to do a loving work.
Should you find yourself in Bethesda, Maryland and have the time to visit Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, you may well see Sully, or one of his facility dog buddies, making rounds to serve those who serve.
Sully and his life-size likeness in the east wing of the George H W Bush Presidential Library, College Station, Texas.
Med Maps is dedicated to helping people, and especially our veterans, find their way. Through print and digital maps, aerial campus renderings and interactive mapping tools, Med Maps simplifies the process of finding your destination.