Eric and K-9 Tahoe

My Name is Eric Maikkula. I was born and raised in Cambridge MN. I grew up in a tight knit family of four. My parents were very loving and supporting and always there for me and my brother. My brother is one year older than me and has been my best friend my entire life. Growing up we did everything together. After graduating high school and attending one year of college, I joined the USAF from 1995-1999. I was stationed in northern CA for most of that time and deployed to Kuwait in 1998. My first experience in dealing with significant loss of someone close to me was when my father died in 1997 from multiple myeloma. It was devastating.
While serving in the USAF, I married my high school sweetheart in 1996. Our first 3 years of marriage were spent in northern CA, which we loved as it gave us the opportunity to figure out things on our own and rely on each other. After I was honorably discharged, we moved back to MN in 1999. During the next few years we finished college, built a house and began a family. But, not necessarily in that order, it was all kind of happening at the same time. We have three great children. The older two are finished with high school and college, and our youngest “the straggler” is a freshman in high school. My first experience with a service dog of any type was when the straggler spent time in the hospital as an infant. She would light up, but then also experience a calmness when the volunteer would bring the dog around for visits. I consider myself very blessed to have such an amazing person for my wife! She has been with me through every good and hard time and continues to be my rock. Watching our children grow and become the people that they are has been a great joy in my life. They continue to do awesome things and we are very proud of them.
I have been a State Trooper in MN since 2004. I have had the opportunity to serve in many different capacities in the agency and consider it an honor to have done so. The people that I have come to know over the last 20+ years in the MSP and other agencies, is by far the most rewarding part of my law enforcement career.
Over the course of my career (like most in the LE, First Responder, Military) I have been exposed to numerous calls and scenes that have been difficult and have had a lasting impact. During that same time, in my personal life (like everyone else) I have experienced difficult situations, both directly and indirectly.
The tragic deaths of Burnsville PD Officers Paul Elmstrand, Matt Ruge and Burnsville FD Firefighter/Paramedic Adam Finseth on February 18th of 2024 combined the professional and personal side for me. I did not know Matt Ruge or Adam Finseth before they were killed. But, I have known Paul Elmstrand since he was 4 years old. Paul was in a unique category for me and my family. I viewed him almost as one of our own kids, but also as a much younger brother or nephew. As a young man Paul put me in a mentor/role model position in his life, that as he got older developed into a close friendship. When Paul became an Officer with BPD, he asked if I would be his emergency contact. I considered that an honor, but did not really consider that I would actually have to carry out the duties associated with that. On the morning Paul was killed, I notified his wife and his parents of what had happened and escorted Paul’s wife for the rest of that day. I will be forever grateful that Paul entrusted me to serve in that capacity for him. Paul had a strong Christian faith. Because I know how he believed and of how I believe, I know that I will have the opportunity to thank him for that someday.
A few months after Paul was killed, I started attending therapy sessions to deal with the guilt that I associated with his death. My “shrink”, as I like to refer to her as, was awesome. She introduced me to, and facilitated ART with me, and that has helped tremendously. She also came to know my love for dogs. We have always had dogs for pets and in June of 24 had just gotten a new Golden Retriever puppy, named Tahoe. Over the course of our sessions, my shrink suggested that checking out Soldier’s 6 and having Tahoe trained as a service dog may be something worth looking into. That has led me to now. Tahoe and I are about to embark on the journey of having her trained as a service dog. I am very grateful for the opportunity to do so. Thank you Soldier’s 6!