A Hero’s Welcome

A Hero’s Welcome for Rex, a Marine’s Best Friend
By ZACH SCHONBRUN
The New York Yankees

It has become second nature for Rex, a retired sergeant in the Marine Corps, to nose around the perimeter of any space he walks into. Rex, an 11-year-old German shepherd, surely would have done so at Yankee Stadium on Sunday if he were unleashed.

But Rex, a former bomb-sniffing dog who served three tours in Iraq, was held fast by his owner, the retired corporal Megan Leavey, during a pregame ceremony. So he wagged his tail through a standing ovation from the crowd.
Marine Corporal Megan Leavey with Sergeant Rex at Yankee Stadium.Ray Stubblebine/ReutersMarine Cpl. Megan Leavey with Sgt. Rex at Yankee Stadium.

Yankees outfielder Nick Swisher and third baseman Alex Rodriguez presented Leavey with an autographed jersey. Then Marine Capt. Eric Tausch surprised Leavey with a Purple Heart — a replacement for a medal that was recently stolen.

Leavey, 28, earned that medal searching for roadside bombs with Rex during two tours in Iraq from 2004 to 2006. Both were injured by an explosion on a mission in Ramadi, Iraq, in 2006.

Leavey was knocked unconscious and sustained a brain injury and temporary hearing loss; Rex sustained damage to his shoulder. They rehabilitated together for a year at Camp Pendleton in California before Leavey was granted an honorable discharge and returned to Westchester County. Rex, however, continued to serve until this April, when he was officially retired. Leavey made sure he had a caring place to come home to. She adopted him.

“It was really important to me,” Leavey said. “This dog has saved my life. He was my partner.”

Leavey added: “It was very, very hard for me to leave California not knowing if I was ever going to see him again. Just going through all those years and not being together — it was a waiting game. When I finally realized it was going to happen, it was like a weight lifted off my shoulders. It’s amazing. He’s home, he’s happy, and I get to take care of him as long as he has left.”

Mindy Levine, the wife of the Yankees president Randy Levine, read about Leavey on the Internet and was amazed. She and Randy — both avid dog lovers — paid for Leavey’s trip to California to pick up Rex. “It’s an honor to know Megan,” Mindy Levine said.

The Yankees recognized Leavey and Rex at home plate on Sunday and even surprised Leavey with the new Purple Heart. Rex retired as a sergeant — an official Marine designation, Leavey said, because all canines must be one rank above their handlers.

“The dog does all the work, we just hold the leash,” Leavey said. “You have to respect them.”

On Sunday, Rex sniffed around the stadium’s perimeter, not because of obligation but presumably for fun. He’s a civilian dog now.

“He’s got a lot of toys now, he can lay on his dog bed, patrol the yard for deer,” Leavey said. “He’s happy.”

http://bats.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/13/a-heros-welcome-for-rex-a-marines-best-friend/