After years of service and silent battles, retired Army Chaplin and now Miami VA Chaplain Brad Turner rediscovered connection, purpose and healing sparked by the companionship of a four-legged friend through Puppies Assisting Wounded Servicemembers (PAWS).
Turner wasn’t seeking transformation; he was simply curious. What started as a tentative step toward healing became a life altering journey, one that now echoes in the halls of the Miami VA Healthcare System.
“I saw an advertisement for the PAWS program and was curious about what, if anything, it could do for me,” Turner recalled. What it did was shift his entire view, not just of dogs, but of himself.
In his two decades of military service, Turner mastered the art of discipline and service. Yet, after retiring in 2010, he faced the quiet battles of post-service life: isolation, mistrust and a fading sense of purpose.
“Before joining the program, I always felt alone. Even in crowded rooms. Even with family sometimes. Trust was not a commodity I had in great supply,” he shared.
But through PAWS, Turner began working with service dogs in training—not to receive one, but to train them.
“Personally, PAWS helped me see dogs differently… emotionally, the deep connection I wanted to share with the animal was new,” he said.
The program offered more than companionship. It rekindled something essential within him. “Sometimes, I did not want to keep going. The PAWS program gave me hope that I could train a dog to be with me, understand what I need, and I could trust to be there for me. This gave me hope in living again,” he said.
That hope became a mission
Turner’s newfound determination led him to a nonprofit that paired him with Smokey, the dog who would become his battle buddy.
“Smokey does externally for me that I don’t do so well internally,” he said. “There is something that happened to me when I realized that Smokey is trained to just me. He is my service dog, and that gives me enough strength most days to refute hopelessness and anxiety.”
Inspired by his healing, Turner set out to give others the same gift. In 2024, he launched the Building Awareness and Resilience through Canines (BARC) program at the Miami VA. “The five pillars of the program are education, acquisition, training, verification and therapy.”
Now serving as a VA chaplain, Turner sees his role as both a calling and a continuation of service.
“Chaplains can do what some can’t. We have deep flexibility. Combine that with my noncommissioned officer (NCO) training, the only thing I could do is create a program to help Veterans do what I did! I still live by the saying, ‘Train to lead, lead to train. NCOs led the way!’ Nowadays, it’s ‘Chaplains lead the way!”
His goal is as bold as it is heartfelt: to expand the program across the VA system and help reduce Veteran suicide.
“When we get out of the military, many don’t realize the sense of self that is lost. BARC is becoming a community of other, abled Veterans who help remind our other, abled Veterans life is worth living, and best when you do not try to live it alone,” he said.
His advice to other Veterans is simple: “Don’t stop till you find your canine battle buddy; he is ready to take on the world with you.”
Turner didn’t just find a partner in Smokey, inspired by the PAWS program; he found his purpose again. And now, he’s passing that light on, one wagging tail at a time.
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I have a dog already but how do I make him a service dog so that he may go wherever i go? He brings me so much love and joy.
As a trainer, competitor, and breeder of dogs I really relate to your passion and accomplishment! I would love to support such a program if it ever gets out to California, Loma Linda VA. Huge thanks for you, your pups and all the people you have touched with this mission!
I too found great solace in the animals that I have been blessed with. I have twelve chickens two dogs and one cat.
I’ve discovered that they all have their own way of serving the Lord through serving me. Yeah, I went there. All animals were meant to be man’s companions and servants and assigned that duty from the beginning. Genesis.
The fall of man changed their nature of that relationship but it still remains in all animals. Any animal even an insect can be trained by man. Check the books. Bee’s are a good example. Probably because we interact with them more than others.
The point is that we need them to be spiritually fulfilled as much as they need us.
Let us not forget that God is truly invested in all of us and animals see us as we are to see God. We need to love them like God loves us to understand each of them. The true lesson though is to see and understand how to love God.
I have sacrificed my time to get to know some animals and I am amazed how much they respond when they become aware of it. They love they return at that point is astounding. It borders on worship. Wildlife is more difficult to change. Though even large predators and elephants can reach that awareness. Check the records of human and animal interactions and you’re gonna have your eyes opened to what God’s grace has done. Not just for humanity but the world. We serve a Great and powerful God indeed. Sometimes it takes awhile to make that connection but it’s true. Amen.
Hi, I may not have served in combat but I am a veteran of the US Army and I am proud to have been 1 of the NCOs that have led the way! I had to get out on my ETS because of my mental health. I have been through so much crap! in my civilian life that has and will continue to change me forever. I am now 60 yrs old and I live alone with my 3 cats. I have 2 very loving children but my life is still lonely and I sometimes feel sad and hopeless. How can I get a service dog that can help me through my PTSD and give me purpose?