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RECIPIENTS
& K9'S
K-9 Roxy
My Name is Joe Hillstrom. My wife, Jackie, and I just celebrated our 15 year wedding anniversary and we have two beautiful daughters together (Jayce, (😎 and Jaedyn, (4)). I also have an adult daughter, Hannah. Hannah and her husband, Andrew, had a son last October (Kaenan) and made me a grandpa.
K-9 Kaya


Sometimes, we get a recipient, and it is important to them to share their story, yet having their name and pictures out there makes them a little uncomfortable. We never want someone to not want a dog because they fear their name being out there and we would never put someone through more than they already have been through because of their sacrifices for our country. Thus we are very honored to have the privilege of introducing you to this next recipient. He has fought for our freedom and now it is time we show him he is not alone. He was gifted one the 3 new pups. He has named this beautiful little girl Kaya. Please join us in welcoming little K9 Kaya and her battle buddy to the Soldier's 6 family! May they never feel alone again. Special thank you once again to Sue. She has helped to heal 3 heroes with her beautiful donations of puppies.
Below is his bio:
I served on active duty as an infantryman in the US Army deploying to Afghanistan twice between the years of 2005 and 2011. After I got out of the military, I spent a few years battling myself, moving around, and not feeling a purpose in life.
I moved to Minnesota a few years ago after the loss of my previous dog to try and be closer to my family. I recently purchased a home and have been spending too much time alone and my family and friends have noticed me slipping into old, bad habits that were seen when I first got out of the military.
My family knew the importance my previous dog had in my life and they recommended Soldier6 to me in order to get myself back on track for good.
James and K-9 Mya

Hi, my name is James Hamilton, and I have been in the army for 16 years and counting. I joined in 2006 when I realized college was not the right fit for me. I grew up in a military family; my dad was a major for the army for 21 years. I decided the discipline and structure were the right fit for me; thus, I embarked on my army career.
I first joined the National Guard and was part of the charlie company 834th ASB (Red Bulls). My MOS was 25 Bravo. My first deployment was in 2008-2009 to Iraq. I was nervous, not knowing what to expect entering into a war zone. This deployment, overall, was a typical deployment. I had some scary experiences, but because I never really left my base, it was better than it could have been.
I went to active duty in 2009, at Fort Bliss Texas Delta company 125th BSB attached 1-13th CAV. I then switched my MOS to 92 fox. I was deployed in 2011/2012 to Afghanistan, and unlike my last deployment, this one was rough. As a fueler in the army being deployed, I saw a lot more action and saw things no one should have to. To this day, I suffer from PTSD from this deployment. Something as innocent as a soccer ball had to be questioned and feared over there.
In January 2013, I left active duty and joined the reserves in which I still reside. I'm currently with the Great Lake Command, and I switched back to my original MOS as a 25 Bravo. I have received the soldier of the year reward, ARCOM, and army achievement medals. I am proud to be a soldier and to serve our country.
I married my wife in 2013 and welcomed a son in 2016 and a daughter in 2020. I always thought that with time, my anxiety and PTSD would fade, but that's not the case. It's hard to tell people you need help and that you're having a hard time with life dealing with things from deployment. For my civilian job, I am an over the road trucker, which leaves me to be alone at night and no one around to help me cope. My hope with this service dog is that I will have a battle buddy to help me deal with everyday life.




Tim and K-9 Mia



Hey there, my name is Tim Schroeder and I am a sergeant with Waseca Police Department. I have been a police officer for 24yrs, 23 of them with Waseca PD.
Ever since I can remember, I have always wanted to be an officer. My father was a paramedic and my grandfather a firefighter, so I knew I wanted to serve to community in my own way.
The life of an officer is not an easy one by any means. Many of us deal with the unthinkable and the lowest of the low, often finding it hard to see the good on the darkest of days. We deal with continuous trauma, which is often hard to reconcile within ourselves.
Waseca is a small, rural community and we often know those we serve and come in contact with. A few incidents from my experience stand out and will forever stick with me & have changed my life. The first that comes to mind is a deadly home invasion of a family that happened on Feb 3rd, 2007, and is an image I cannot unsee. On Jan 6th, 2019, I was shot at and witnessed one of my other three partners that night take a bullet to the head. Both of these have left me with the struggles of flashbacks, wondering if I did enough, did I fail my community & partners, survivor’s guilt and questioning my place as an officer and a person. I also feel I have placed a lot on my family to understand.
Having been a K9 officer, I know firsthand what a wonderful partner a dog makes. I am grateful to Soldiers 6 for recognizing a need for those in law enforcement to have the unconditional love of a dog to help with filling in those missing pieces. I recently suffered a mild heart attack and believe the gift of Mia will not only help heal my heart but also give me the motivation I need to keep moving in this crazy thing called life.
Thank you to all who serve and to those whom make this a possibility.


Luis and K-9 Valens



We welcome into our Soldiers 6 family a hero who has been through enough and wishes to remain a bit anonymous, and we absolutely respect that. He has given his all to his community, and tonight, he gets to snuggle and play with his new battle buddy, Valens. K9 Valens is special in so many ways, but his battle buddy is dedicating him to Officer Ella French(she is pictured below). Officer French killed in the line of duty this past August after a car she and her partner pulled over fired on the them. Ella tragically lost her life, and her partners will forever be changed. Special thank you to Coco's Heart Dog Rescue. We appreciate the care for our recipients and help in placing these 4 legged heroes with their new handlers.
Hello, my name is Luis and I am originally from a suburb of Chicago, Illinois called Carpentersville. I grew up there until 2007 when I moved to Minnesota to be with my now wife. My wife and I had two beautiful daughters.
It was my childhood dream of mine to become a police officer. In 2012 that dream came true and I became a police officer for one of the biggest departments in the State of Minnesota. During my service for this police department I saw a lot of events that normal civilians don’t see. I responded to shootings, stabbings, and people not breathing calls. Also I had to perform CPR on adults and on infants. The infants that I performed CPR on did not survive. This crushed me a lot seeing infants die. I also was involved in a squad accident where my partner and I were T-Boned by a drunk driver. Due to this accident I had a pulmonary embolism which is a blood clot that was found in my lungs. I was told by the doctor that if I had gone to sleep that morning after my shift my wife would have been found to be deceased because the blood clot was traveling up to my heart. And if the blood clot would have reached my heart it would have stopped it and I would have died. Due to me being new to the job I just brushed it off and continued to work. I didn’t realize that it was affecting me but it was because I wanted to be superman.
Fast forward to 2020 I was still a police officer for the same city where it all started. We all know what happened that year. I was detailed to work the unrest/riots. There we had stuff thrown at us, people shooting guns at us, shooting fireworks at us and getting verbally abused.
I finished working the riots and that was the first time I knew something was wrong with me. I was very paranoid, not wanting to stop for red lights and thought people were following me home. I knew that I had to get professional help. When I got professional help I was diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety and depression. I had to medically retire from my childhood dream.
Having PTSD, anxiety and depression I feel like I can not go into any store because I always think that I am going to get ambushed or someone is going to recognize me. So I stay home for the most part and not go out.
I want a battle buddy to help me get out more and feel calmer at home and in the stores.


Matt and K-9 Delta

My name is Matt, I served in the army from 2011-2014. I was OEF 11-12 with the 172nd brigade, I experienced my first traumatic event when we found some older AT-4 launchers and were told to use them for training. During this time one of my friends was up to fire his and there was a rupture in the tube causing the weapon to detonate within the tube when fired. My friend was killed immediately. During the course of the next few years and after my out process I continued to use alcohol to mask the pain. I didn't want to show any weakness and did I feel I could trust anyone to be able to reach out for help. After my family who was very supportive told me and assisted in me to find the help I needed through the VA. Still having a few struggles, I have gone back to alcohol and continuing to shut down. I am currently working on getting better but then my mother found soldiers6 and told me to reach out. I feel this will be by far one of the best solutions to helping me. I strongly support this program and feel there needs to be more out there like soldiers6.



Miguel and K-9 Raya


My name is Miguel Guadalajara, and boy, have I had a such the life. After high school, I really did not know what I wanted to do with my life. I was not ready for college and I did not want to work at a dead-end job. So, in 1997, I joined the Marine Corps instead. What an experience I had. In my first four years I lived in California and traveled around the world, but when the nation was attacked, I knew things were about to change. In September 10, 2004, my Battalion and I were sent to Fallujah Iraq. We took part in Operation Phantom Fury, the taking of Fallujah. What an experience to say the least. I was in theater (Iraq) until April 2005. When I got back to the states, I had orders to Recruiting duty in Minnesota, this would be my second tour of recruiting duty.
In February 2009, I made the hardest decision in my life (at this time) and I left the Marine Corps and decided to start a new chapter of my life and follow my childhood dreams. So, I went to school and obtained my degree in criminal justice and passed the Minnesota post-test. Soon after, I was hired as a Police Officer on October 26, 2012.
I enjoyed my time as a police office, and loved everything about it. But my career was stopped short and again, I had to make the hardest decision in my life, to choose between my career or mental health. I choose my mental health, for the wellbeing of me and my family.
I reached out to Soldiers 6 and told them my story. I was lucky to be matched with a beautiful German Shepard named Raya. Thank you for the opportunity to have a companion through this horrible struggle I am going though.


Aimee and K-9 Carl



My name is Aimee. I was born in South Dakota and joined the Army out of high school. I’ve been serving for the last 20 years and am preparing for retirement. I moved to Minnesota in 2004 and after spending time away for deployments and military duty have been here.
During my service I was sexually assaulted while deployed to the Philippines. That event scarred me. I never sought help, thinking that my emotional state was due to depression which I’ve had my entire life. That event and the significant childhood trauma that had not been addressed has affected my ability to function. Adding on to that, during my deployment to Afghanistan I saw things that scared me, gave me nightmares, and brought up all the past traumas.
I have been trying to manage my pain with a variety of medications and half-assed therapy. It’s only recently, in the last two years, that I’ve been able to talk about my experiences honestly. I have major depressive disorder, I suffer from panic attacks and severe anxiety, insomnia, and was recently diagnosed with PTSD and another mental illness.
In a particularly bad moment I reached out to a good friend to express my despair and he told me about Soldiers6. He told me how the organization has helped his family and urged me to reach out. I never thought I would be able to get a service dog, I’d thought about it but felt there were others who needed them more.
So I reached out. Dana contacted me the same day and we scheduled a call with Ed the next day! They were so kind and made me feel like this was a real option for me. It’s a big step for me to admit I need help, and an even bigger deal to ask for it. I have to do something though, I want to enjoy my life and be the best mom I can be, because, frankly, I haven’t been doing either for a very long time. I’m hoping that with the support of a service dog and this wonderful organization, plus therapy, I can begin to heal.


Gary and K-9 Glory


Glory and Gary. Gary is a recently medically retired police officer. He worked for over 17 years for our town and 21 total years in law enforcement. When Gary took his uniform off December 23 2019 we didn’t know that he would not ever put it back on again. He was determined to get well and that is what started a whirlwind of time we had from doctors, psychologist, treatment, hospitalization, lawyers and more. I am glad he received the help he needed and is continuing to receive that help. He was saved by Grace the night it was too much and he didn’t want to live anymore, his cup overflowed. Grace brought him to a place where he could ask for help. He is now at 21 months of sobriety and he continues healing with his doctors and psychiatrist help. He has overcome many struggles in the last couple years and we are grateful for his accomplishments. Glory has an older pup brother Gunny. Gunny has been an important part of Gary’s recovery. Gary has brought Gunny pretty much where ever he goes. He has said that there are times that being accountable to his dog is part of his duty to keep pushing towards getting well. Gunny has taken on his new role as Gary’s buddy. It has been interesting watching the two interact and seeing the relationship between these two, Gunny notices Gary’s stress and Gary has picked up on Gunny’s cues. Gunny isn’t trained as a therapy or service dog but he has really fallen into the role well. With this we have realized how much benefit a service dog would be for Gary. Gunny is getting older, slowing down and can’t do as much as he used to so we are looking forward to Glory stepping into this role. Glory is loving our small hobby farm. There is plenty of room here for her to run, play and terrorize the chickens. We feel blessed to have this opportunity to have Glory as part of our family. We are so thankful for the support of Invisible Wounds Project and Soldiers 6.


Michael and K-9 Xandra


My name is Michael Westerfield, I was born and raised by my parents in Easton, MD and after I graduated from high school, I joined the navy. I had met the mother of my two children, who are amazing boys that are my whole world. I served 10 years in the navy before I injured my back, I had done two deployments. I have seen some amazing places in the world and along those I was a part of the Haiti Relief and was one of the first Navy ships out there.
I moved here to Minnesota due to my ex was from here to be close to her family. I had a very hard time adjusting and became very closed off. My boys were the ones who helped me see more clearly and what I needed to do, which was to give them a better life. I started to go to college to better myself and it also helped me with becoming social again. Shortly after starting college, it was hard being around the civilian side so I reached out and joined the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP). They helped me to get back in to the civilian world and every step of the way. Without me joining the WWP I would have never have meet some of the amazing service members that I know can call friends, and one in, Tim Diamond, who pointed me to here for help, Soldiers 6.
I knew with everything medically and mentally going on in my life I need help and you can not always get ahold of someone. Being able to have a K-9 by my side 24/7 I know that I will have someone in my corner even in my darkest hour. Everyone needs someone to watch there 6 and that is why this program is so beneficial. Between having a K-9, my kids (when I get them), friends, and family I know I will never have to go through a dark time again. Thank you so much Soldier 6 for making this all possibly for all of us.

