Second lady Karen Pence makes 3 veteran-themed stops in Jacksonville area

Second lady Karen Pence took a tour of K9s for Warriors Wednesday spending almost all of it listening carefully and asking a few questions behind a black mask, her hands clasped in front of her.

But at one point she couldn't resist the dogs and dropped to her knees to greet Indy, an Australian shepherd mix who will one day be a support dog for a veteran who needs him.

"That's the kind of puppy we have," she told trainer Erin King, stroking Indy on his neck. Indeed, the Pences have an Australian shepherd named Harley, a gift to Vice President Mike Pence on Father's Day 2017.

Karen Pence spent almost an hour at K9 for Warriors in the Nocatee area but didn't take questions from the media. It was one of three Jacksonville-area stops she made Wednesday, accompanied by U.S. Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia.

The first was at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, where Pence met with about 50 military spouses and talked about the administration's TEAMS program. The program is designed to give training to the spouses of military members to help them get and maintain jobs.

Because of frequent moves and other issues, the unemployment rate for military spouses was 24 percent before the coronavirus pandemic, Pence's office said.

After going to K9s for Warriors, she went to Social Grounds Coffee Co. in Springfield, which is owned by a married couple, veteran Jason Kellaway and wife Amanda.

At K9 for Warriors, CEO Rory Diamond, who is on the Jacksonville City Council, told her 72 percent of the nonprofit's clients, all veterans, have attempted suicide. And 82 percent have had suicidal thoughts.

That's where the service dogs come in, giving emotional support to vets, who spend 21 days at the facility, learning how to bond with their dog.

Greg Wells, a lead trainer, is an Army veteran diagnosed with post-traumatic stress syndrome, which left him feeling hopeless and lonely. That's not the case after meeting his service dog, Utah, who's 8 years old.

"He gives me hope," Wells said. "He's gifted me so much, you can't even put a price tag on it."

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Second lady Karen Pence makes 3 veteran-themed stops in Jacksonville area

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